Excellence and Competition

I was stunned to read this article in the Washington Post with the headline:

The dominance of Michael Phelps has crushed the Olympic dreams of these 27 swimmers

I clicked through mostly because I didn’t think the article was what I thought, based on the headline. I was mistaken. It was exactly what I thought: the article lamented the missed gold medals by swimmers who came in second to Michael Phelps. So I thought it was a joke … you know, an Onion story or a ha-ha or something. And there was a bit of a light tone about alternative histories and all that, but the point was made: maybe Michael Phelps should step aside so others can win gold medals.

August 12, 2016Allison Brennan, Art & Entertainment, Writing & Publishing — 6 Comments ↓

Tagged with: competition, excellence, gold medal, Harrison Bergeron, Michael Phelps, Nora Roberts, Olympics, perfection, RITA, Romance Writers of America, Vince Lombardi
Posted in Allison Brennan, Art & Entertainment, Writing & Publishing

Guest Blog

Kelly as Lady MacBeth in high school.

I’m so proud of my college girl … Kelly is transferring from Southern Oregon University to Lesley University in Cambridge. That’s a 3,000 mile journey. Why? Because she felt that Lesley would give her the BFA program that she wants. And while she doesn’t know exactly what she wants to do (few 20 year olds do,) she knows the general field. She’s very artistic, and not just because she’s an artist (who has won many awards) but she’s also creative in how she sees the world around her. She’s also an outstanding writer, and while this blog has more to do with making a major decision to change colleges, it’s also a motivational lesson that will appeal to anyone who is thinking about a major change.

I gave Kelly a copy of Steven Pressfield’s THE WAR OF ART a couple years ago, and I know she’s read it at least as many times as I have. It’s a book about creativity and resistance — why don’t we do what we want? Why are we afraid? Steven Pressfield said, “Remember our rule of thumb: The more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it. … So if you’re paralyzed with fear, it’s a good sign. It shows you what you have to do.”

I really hope you enjoy it: Change and Fear of the Unknown

An example of Kelly’s work from last year.

August 9, 2016Guest Bloggers, Writing & Publishing — 1 Comment ↓

Tagged with: Allison Brennan, art, BFA, change, college, fear, Kelly Brennan, The War of Art
Posted in Guest Bloggers, Writing & Publishing

Self-Pub Etiquette

I am a published author. I WRITE books for a living. I love my job, I love writing, I love working from home in my pajamas with a caffeine drip in my veins. Other than my kids, there is nothing I love more than writing.

I am NOT a reviewer. I have NEVER reviewed a book on this blog. I have on occasion recommended books that I have read and enjoyed, but I have never reviewed them.

“I love your blog, you review so many great books on your blog, I’m hoping you’ll take a look at TITLE. Here’s a bit more about my book: SYNOPSIS. Email me and I’ll be happy to send you a complimentary copy for your review.”

Really? You’ve been to my blog? You see that I review a lot of books and want me to review yours?

I DO NOT REVIEW BOOKS. I never have.

This blog is MURDER SHE WRITES, not MURDER SHE READS.

I’m the she, and I write about murder. End of story.

June 28, 2016Allison Brennan, Writing & Publishing — 17 Comments ↓

Tagged with: Allison Brennan, books, etiquette, reviewers, writers
Posted in Allison Brennan, Writing & Publishing

Welcome Guest Blogger Lisa Black!

In That Darkness, forensic specialist Maggie Gardiner investigates, among other things, the murder of a young girl found draped over a grave in Cleveland’s historic East Ninth Street Cemetery. It wounds Maggie to think that the young teen could go missing without anyone calling the cops, filing a report, or looking for her in any other way. Her fingerprints are not in the criminal database and Maggie discovers that there are precious few other ways to track down the identity of one lost girl.

One of the nets she can cast, however, is called NamUs—the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. It came into existence after 9/11 and is a national centralized repository of information, separated into three distinct databases :

May 3, 2016Books, Books, Books!, Our Guests & Friends — 3 Comments ↓

Tagged with: Guest Bloggers, Lisa Black, missing persons, mystery, NamUs, That Darkness, thriller
Posted in Books, Books, Books!, Our Guests & Friends

Please, Just No: When Television Screws it Up

The buzz on social media is whether the 8-season run of CASTLE can continue into Season 9 without Kate Beckett. Hands down, NO ONE I know plans to watch it. They’re done. I want to be done as well, but truth is I’m a television addict and will likely watch it and bitch and complain the whole time. (Sort of like SUPERNATURAL season 6 and X-Files seasons 8 and 9.)

Loved this show from the beginning … until now.

What I want I don’t think I can have, and that’s a clear ending to the series with a fabulous series finale ala JUSTIFIED and what’s planned for PERSON OF INTEREST this May and BONES season 12, which will be the end. Or, when a show is cancelled or giving a truncated season, the Powers That Be will allow the writers to wrap everything up and give their dedicated audience closure and satisfaction. (WAREHOUSE 13 with the short last season; the upcoming short last season of RIZZOLI & ISLES.) But television screws up everything in two key ways:

1) They continue a show beyond it’s prime, usually without a key character that IS the show. (X-FILES)

2) They cancel a show and the writers can’t unwrite the cliffhanger.

The first makes me sad and embarrassed for the remaining writers and cast. The later makes me extremely angry.

April 20, 2016Allison Brennan, Movies and Television — 33 Comments ↓

Tagged with: Allison Brennan, cancelations, CASTLE, Kate Beckett, Rick Castle, romantic suspense, series, television, TV
Posted in Allison Brennan, Movies and Television

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Bio:

Allison Brennan

Allison Brennan is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of twenty-four romantic thrillers and mysteries, including the Lucy Kincaid series and the Max Revere series. She lives in Northern California with her husband and five children.

Maximum Exposure
February 4, 2014

Two years before the events in Notorious, Max travels to Colorado Springs to investigate the disappearance of a college student. Frustrated over the lack of interest from both friends of the victim and campus authorities, Max tags along with the leader of search and rescue and his dog through the beautiful and deadly Rocky Mountains in the hopes of finding answers. Every answer she finds leads to more questions--questions neither the police nor the college want Max asking.
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Excellence and Competition

Guest Blog

Self-Pub Etiquette

Welcome Guest Blogger Lisa Black!

Please, Just No: When Television Screws it Up

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