SinC Chapter meeting--January 4th!

Hello, Sisters and Brothers in Crime!

Just sneaking in between the holidays with this advance message about our first meeting of the New Year on Thursday, January 4th at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C starting at 6:15 PM. [Important: Because next week will be a short one, if you are definitely planning to attend, we ask you to send your meal order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com without delay.]

Back by popular demand, our esteemed Vice President Howard Lewis will be leading a guided discussion on the following topics which were suggested in a group conversation at our Holiday Party:

·         What makes a good book?

-Plot vs Character (how to)

-Writing vs Story

·         Emotion

-Why

-How, direct, deep

-How, indirect

·         What would you like to see more of in books?

·         What would you like to see less of in books?

·         Humor – when and how?

-When is humor appropriate

-When is it inappropriate

-How do you make things funny

·         Pacing

-Do you intentionally pace

-When

-How do you change the pace

·         Edits

-How many drafts 

-Steps

-Word searches

-When is it done

·         Critiques

-Kinds of critiques

-How to critique

-Keeping voice

-What makes a bad critique

-What makes a good critique

-How to take a critique

The January meeting will also include the election of officers and a brief discussion of some additional suggestions and ideas for upcoming programs in the New Year.

As always, in order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu for our group, click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Again, please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal.

Wishing you and yours a very Happy and Healthy New Year!

Sincerely,

Sally Handley

President, Upstate SC SinC

Don't Miss SinC's "We Love Bookstores" Celebration December 9th

The Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime will present a $500 "We Love Bookstores" award to Poor Richards Booksellers at a joint 30th Anniversary Celebration in Easley on Saturday, December 9th from 2:00 to 4:00 PM.

Poor Richards Booksellers

104 S. Main Street, Easley

Every month Sisters in Crime is awarding $500 to an independent bookstore that features books written by Sisters In Crime members to use for promotion or marketing or hosting book signing events.

Upstate SC Chapter Members will be selling and signing books at this event. Please join us in the celebration and in support of our Sisters in Crime authors.

Remember, books make great Christmas presents!

PLEASE SHARE THIS EVENT THROUGH YOUR PERSONAL SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS.

Minutes from November 2017 meeting

November 4, 2017

Minutes from the November 2017 meeting

Twenty five attendees yet again at our November 2, 2017 meeting! President Sally Handley sure knows how to get and keep our interest, and this month our guest speaker was acclaimed author Susan Crawford.

Susan summarized her path to publication, including the up and downs of getting an agent. She got a lot of rejections, but never fear—she ended up with a fabulous and renowned agent. How? Susan made the effort ot edit her debut novel, The Pocket Wife, as her agent suggested. But all her hard work and flexibility paid off. The Pocket Wife went to auction, and Susan landed a 6-figure contract and a 2-book deal with major publisher, Harper Collins!

But Susan’s presentation didn’t focus solely on the “business” aspect of writing, and instead she then offered us her sage writing advise. Do NOT kill your darlings, as we are always told. Instead, be confident in those moments when we are channeling our characters and be hesitant to over-revise those moments of inspiration. “Don’t think, write,” she repeated several times.

An inspiring evening!

And don’t forget, our annual holiday bash will be Sunday, December 17^th at 2:00. Mark those calendars and see ya’ then!

Respectfully Submitted,

Cindy Blackburn

Secretary, Upstate Sisters in Crime

Minutes from October 2017 meeting

November 4, 2017

Minutes from the October, 2017 chapter meeting:

Your secretary is exceedingly delinquent, but here’s what happened at our October 5, 2017 meeting.

25 members and guests made an evening of it to hear what dynamic father-daughter duo, John and Rowe Carenen had to say. John’s the author and Rowe’s the book publicist—a match made in heaven!

John, author of the Thomas O’Shea series, started us off describing his trials and tribulations and need for a book marketer with the release of his first literary thriller, Signs of Struggle. Enter daughter Rowe.

Rowe, The Book Concierge, (thebookconcierge.com) took it from there and offered gobs of advice from her vast knowledge and expertise in book marketing. A few tidbits: have a blog, write short blogs, but often, use a social media plan, and be sure to have a “brand”—your author persona that you apply to all social media. Several venues she is fond of are FaceBook, Twitter and Goodreads.

Rowe particularly likes blog tours, and suggests all authors read, follow, and comment on favorite blogs to gain notice. She also suggests building relationships with booksellers and book stores and emphasized the importance of a successful book launch.

All in all a successful and informative meeting!

Respectfully Submitted,

Cindy Blackburn

Secretary, Upstate Sisters in Crime

Meet Award-Winning Author Susan Crawford

Award-winning poet and best-selling author, Susan Crawford will be the guest speaker of our Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime on Thursday, November 2nd, 6:00-8:30 PM at the Runway Café, Greenville, SC. 

Originally from Miami, Susan lived in New York and Boston before moving to Atlanta, where she raised three daughters and taught Adult Education in a variety of settings. 

A member of The Atlanta Writers Club, The Village Writers, and Sisters in Crime, Susan’s two psychological suspense novels, The Pocket Wife and The Other Widow (Morrow-Harper Collins), gained international publication and acclaim. Now a full-time author, she lives with her husband and a trio of rescue kitties in Atlanta, where she is on her local planning commission and dabbles in local politics.

All of our meetings are open to the public. However, we hope our excellent programming and fellowship plus the benefits associated with membership in the national Sisters in Crime organization will prompt you to become a member.

We meet at about 6:15 p.m. with dinner served about 6:30 p.m. PLEASE be sure to order your meal the day before the meeting by emailing your drink and meal order to Ellis Vidler. The Advance Order menu on the tab at right provides menu options and contact information for Ellis.

The Carenens Team Up for Oct. 5 Meeting

John and Rowe Carenen are the dual guest speakers for the October 5 meeting of the Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime. The father and daughter are teaming up to discuss the marketing demands authors face once they finish a novel. Writing THE END on a manuscript, whether it’s a debut novel or a writer’s tenth book, marks the start of marketing the author’s work and attempting to gain traction in a crowded, ever-changing marketplace.

 John Carenen, a professor who recently retired from Newberry College’s English Department, has written four novels. When his first novel debuted, his daughter, Rowe, offered to help him market it. That experience led Rowe to create the Book Concierge, a firm that supports writers from all over the world who are at various stages of the writing/publishing/promoting processes.

The monthly Upstate SC SinC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 5, at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet the Carenens and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. The Carenens’ talk will begin after new and old business at about 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu for our group, click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

Want to know more about the Carenens. Here’s how they describe themselves:

John Carenen, a native Iowan, graduated with an M.F.A. from the Iowa Writers Workshop, surprising everyone who knew him, especially high school teachers who saw him as shiftless, pointless, and a bit dim. He continues to write. His work has appeared in popular periodicals, and he has been a featured columnist in newspapers in the Carolinas. His debut novel, Signs of Struggle, was published in 2012, the sequel, A Far Gone Night in 2014, and the third in the Thomas O'Shea series, The Face on the Other Side, will be published before Christmas. He is hard at work, more or less, on novel #4 in the Thomas O'Shea series. 

Rowe Carenen is a graduate of Salem College and the University of Southern Mississippi. When asked, she'd say that poetry has been her passion ever since she realized that words could convey more than just the facts. Her poems have appeared in various literary journals and magazines, including The Revenant Culture and GERM, and her first collection, In the Meantime, was published by Neverland Publishing in September 2014.  Her second collection, Bring Out The Bonebreakers, should be out early 2018. She is currently living in Greenville, and while she agrees that pumpkin spice is pretty great, she prefers gingerbread in her chai lattes.

SinC Monthly Meeting September 7th

Greetings, Sisters and Brothers in Crime!

Hard to believe the summer is coming to a close and it’s time for our September meeting. Once again, we are in for an informative presentation by a career law enforcement and investigation professional. We’re honored to have Amos Welch, CFE(R), CPP(R) speak to us on Thursday, September 7th.

With over 32 years experience in the field of bank security, financial crimes investigation and fraud, Mr. Welch has served in the public, military and corporate sector as a criminal investigator, corporate security manager and a regional corporate investigations manager.

Having served with the Greenville County, SC Sheriff’s Office, the US Army Criminal Investigations Division, and American Federal Bank, he retired from the BB&T Financial Corporation in May 2009.

After holding his professional credentials as a Certified Fraud Examiner (ACFE) and a Certified Protection Professional (ASIS) for over 25 years, Mr. Welch now maintains a Retirement status with both credentials.

He holds degrees from Richland Technical College, Greenville Technical College and the University of South Carolina-Upstate, and is a Honor Graduate of the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.

Involved in the community, Mr. Welch serves on the Board of Directors of Crime Stoppers-Greenville, is a member of the Greenville Composite Squadron, Civil Air Patrol and volunteers with Meals on Wheels.

The monthly Upstate SC Sisters in Crime meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 7th at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet Amos and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. Amos’ talk will begin right after new and old business at 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

Look forward to seeing you!

Sally Handley

President, SinC Upstate SC Chapter

Co-Directors of The Writer's Block Speaking at SinC August 3

Upstate SC Sisters in Crime is pleased to announce that Anna Katherine Freeland and Carol Young Gallagher, friends and co executive directors of the Writers Block Project. at Perry Correctional Institution, will be speaking to us about the project at our meeting on August 3rd.

The Writer’s Block Project is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that hosts advanced creative writing classes to inmates in SC maximum security prisons and publishes literary collections of their work. Didn’t See it Coming is a literary collection, published by the Writers Block Project featuring fiction, non-fiction and poetry written by men in the WBP workshop at Perry correctional institution. Our SinC Chapter first learned about The Writer’s Block Project from Scott Lewis, Warden at Perry who spoke to us back in 2016.

Anna Katherine Freeland is a Past President of Greenville’s Emrys Foundation, a non-profit that strives to forge a healthy community of poets, writers, readers and storytellers. She enjoys reading and writing poetry and essays. Anna grew up in Greenville  and is a running coach for Fleet Feet, working with runners training for all distances. She also loves to run long distances, especially in faraway places.

Carol Young Gallagher is a longtime Emrys member, Board member and past president of the Board.  She grew up in Anderson, attended Agnes Scott College, where she majored in English and received her Master’s degree in Education at Wheelock College in Boston, MA. She worked at the Children’s Program at Marshall I. Pickens Hospital and is also trained in Family Mediation and teaching Peer Mediation.

The monthly Upstate SC Sisters in Crime meeting is scheduled for Thursday, August 3, at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet our guests and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. The talk will begin right after new and old business at 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler t ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

Author Linda Sands Joins Upstate SinC on July 6

On July 6, Georgia Author of the Year for Mystery/ Detective novels Linda Sands will be the guest speaker at the Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime meeting. Linda is the award-winning author of four novels. Her latest novel, Grand Theft Cargo, is a wild ride from start to finish with a secretive highwayman, explosive house bombs, singing telegrams, flaming mice, secret cancer drugs, dead truckers, an agency that can’t be named, and enough crashes and car chases to remind you these road cowboys have no qualms crossing the zipper to walk the dog in the hammer lane. Her short stories and essays have appeared in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Walton Sun, Skirt! Magazine, Dogplotz, Moronic Ox, a bunch of defunct lit mags and various anthologies. Other recent awards include two Killer Nashville Judge’s Choice Awards for Best Neo-noir and Best PI novel.

Linda will talk about how the procrastinators and/or over-committed among us (who doesn’t fit one of these categories) can actually manage to finish that darned book. She’ll talk about time management, organization, helpful hints, goals, and accountability. She’ll also offer advice on what NOT to do, allowing us to learn from her mistakes—from creating a literary magazine to attending every possible convention/conference/workshop/ signing/ meeting and joining about a bazillion writing related groups and sites. Bottom line? Doing too much can take away from what you should be doing: writing! The author will leave plenty of time for questions.

What did Linda do before becoming an author? “I have been a cocktail waitress in a French hotel, sold vegetables at a roadside stand, signed people up for a record club at the NYS Fair, walked the runway in NY, been the personal trainer to opera singers, the mannequin to a fashion designer, and held part-time positions as telephone operator, telemarketer, and fashion merchandiser. I've worked in finance, retail, dating services, health clubs, fitness magazines and restaurants. I've founded my own literary magazine and contest, and a writer's retreat. I like to say if I didn't hold that job, I probably dated someone who did.”

Linda now splits her writing time between the Gulf Coast of Florida, the Mountains of Georgia and the suburbs of Atlanta where she and her husband cheer on the competing colleges of their children.

The monthly Upstate SC Sisters in Crime meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 6, at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet Linda and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. Linda’s talk will begin right after new and old business at 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

May 4 Chapter Meeting Minutes and Report

Mark your calendars! Our chapter’s SinC 30^th Anniversary Party is June 10. With this in mind, our president Sally Handley started off our monthly meeting with a list of “volunteer opportunities” we can all sink our teeth into. Thanks to all who stepped up to the plate to make sure the celebration is a success. But we’re still looking for folks to help serve refreshments on the big day. Contact Sally if you’re ready, willing and able.

After our standard, but never boring, round of introductions (18 members and guests attended this month’s meeting), Sally introduced our guest speaker, the highly entertaining Dr. Warren Moore. When he’s not at Newbury College doing the English professor thing, Warren writes noir fiction. He regaled us with anecdotes about his personal writer’s journey, and about what’s happening in the Newbury College English Department.

Highlights of Warren’s talk included his explanation of how he came to write short stories, and how he came to know Lawrence Block. Put the two together, and sure enough, Warren’s stories have appeared in several anthologies edited by Block. Not too shabby for a guy who says he feels “Pinocchio moments” whenever he labels himself a “real” writer!

Warren also talked about a new scholarly journal to be published annually by Newbury College, Studies in Crime Writing. Look for the the first issue this fall. It will be free on-line and include only articles which have been subject to a rigorous peer review process.

Warren, who clearly knows fiction from the academic perspective, the writer’s perspective, and the reader’s perspective, left us with this encouraging fact—genre fiction lasts. For example, people are still reading and enjoying Zane Grey, Agatha Christie, and Dashell Hammet.

Intrigued? Check out Warren’s noir novel, Broken Glass Waltzes, and his short stories in those anthologies edited by Lawrence Block, Dark City Lights and In Sunlight or Shadow. And don’t forget our party in June!

Respectfully Submitted,

Cindy Blackburn,
Chapter Secretary

p.s. Warren blogged about his visit to SinC at

https://profmondo.wordpress.com/2017/05/05/in-which-the-prof-is-treated-better-than-he-deserves/

Sisters in Crime 30th Anniversary Celebration

Come join the Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime as we celebrate our 30th anniversary with two entertaining presentations by Award-winning mystery writer, Marcia Talley:

·        Comic Relief: Or, What’s So Funny About Murder?

In the real world, murder and crime aren’t normally regarded as humorous. Crime is a tragedy. Someone has been victimized—robbed, raped, maimed, murdered. Treating death with humor without being tasteless can be a fine line to walk, but the authors Marcia highlights in this talk do it marvelously well using witty dialogue, wacky characterizations, and/or wild and crazy plots with surprise endings. They make us laugh, even in the face of death.

Demystifying the Mystery: Tips on Writing Crime Fiction

From “where do you get your ideas?” to the final “The End”, a concise, illustrated discussion of the roles of plot, character and dialog in the modern mystery novel, with tips on point-of-view and planting clues for the aspiring mystery writer. A question and answer period follows. Includes bibliography and tip sheet handouts.

When:              Saturday, June 10, 2017 from 2:00 to 5:00 PM

Where:             The Easley Room

                         Captain Kimberly Hampton Library

                         304 Biltmore Road, Easley, SC 29640

What:               In addition to our Speaker Presentations, you will meet noted regional 

                         crime fiction writers and enjoy some birthday refreshments.

Co-Sponsor:    Pickens County Library System

Cost:               Free

About the Author

Marcia Talley is the author of FOOTPRINTS TO MURDER and fourteen previous novels featuring Maryland sleuth, Hannah Ives. A winner of the Malice Domestic grant and an Agatha Award nominee for Best First Novel, Ms. Talley won an Agatha and an Anthony Award for her short story "Too Many Cooks" and an Agatha Award for her short story "Driven to Distraction." She is the editor of two mystery collaborations, NAKED CAME THE PHOENIX and I’D KILL FOR THAT, set in a luxury health spa and an exclusive gated community respectively, and her short stories have been published in more than a dozen magazines and anthologies. She divides her time between Annapolis, Maryland and a quaint cottage in the Bahamas.

About Sisters in Crime

Founded in 1987, Sisters in Crime (www.sistersincrime.org)started with a clear vision: “Sisters in Crime is committed to helping women who write, review, buy, or sell crime fiction. Our ultimate goal is to become a service organization to address issues of concern to everyone involved in the mystery field.”

Our vision has morphed over the years, now serving as the voice for excellence and diversity in crime writing. Our ongoing monitoring project is a watchdog for equality among reviewers. Our list of member benefits includes 50 chapters, annual grant opportunities, discounts, and library support. Our membership numbers over 3600 and our community is unparalleled. At our core, while we learn from our past and look to our future, our mission remains focused: to promote the ongoing advancement, recognition, and professional development of women crime writers.

About The Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime                             

SinC’s Upstate SC Chapter meets the first Thursday of each month, January-November. Our meetings are open to the public. However, we encourage individuals who attend more than two meetings a year to join our national organization and regional chapter.

You must be a member of Sisters in Crime to join our regional chapter. National dues are $50 per year and Chapter dues are $15 per year.

Monthly Meetings

DATE:           First Thursday of every month

TIME:            6:15 p.m. informal dinner, 7 p.m. program starts 

WHERE:       The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, SC

COST:           No charge for visitors other than cost of the individual's meal.

PROGRAM:  Guest speaker, either a regional mystery/suspense/thriller author, or an expert in law enforcement and allied fields, or publishing industry professionals. Other pages on our website list authors and subject experts who have visited with us at prior meetings.

Chapter Meeting May 4, 2017

Hello Sisters and Brothers in Crime!

We’re in for a special treat at our monthly meeting on May 4th.  Dr. Warren Moore, mystery writer and Professor of English at Newberry College in Newberry, SC will be our speaker.  Professor Moore is also Editor of Newberry College’s scholarly journal, Studies in Crime Writing. This on-line publication is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal focusing on the literary study of crime writing, including noir, thrillers, and true crime, as well as classical and hard-boiled detective fiction. 

Born in Nashville and raised in the burbs of Nashville and Cincinnati, Moore has been a journalist, tire salesman, stand-up comic, advertising copywriter, magazine editor, and drummer in a variety of unsuccessful bands. He finished tied for 105th in the 1979 National Spelling Bee.

Moore holds a Ph.D. in English from Ball State University, with a specialty in medieval literature, and has taught courses covering topics from the Seven Deadly Sins to film noir. BROKEN GLASS WALTZES, his first novel, was published in 2013, and will be reissued this fall by Down and Out Books. He has published short stories in a variety of print and online venues since then. His short story “Bowery Station, 3:15 A.M.” was named an Honorable Mention in Otto Penzler’s Best American Mystery Stories 2016. His story “Office at Night” recently appeared in In Sunlight or In Shadow, an anthology edited by Lawrence Block. Moore has a story appearing in another Block anthology late this year, and a collection of his short fiction is scheduled to appear in 2018.

Professor Moore can be found on Facebook, as well as at his blog, “Professor Mondo” (http://profmondo.blogspot.com), and he tweets as @profmondo. Moore also plays drums in a 60s-style garage band that plays in the Upstate and Midlands, and lives in Newberry with his wife and daughter.

Our monthly Sisters in Crime meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 4th, at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet Warren Moore and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. Our speaker will begin right after new and old business at 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu for our group, please visit our website — www.sincupstatesc.blogspot.com  — and click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

 If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

 Look forward to seeing you on May4th.

 Sally Handley

Minutes from the April 4, 2017 chapter meeting

You’ve heard of dinner and a movie? Well, here at the Upstate Sisters in Crime, we do dinner and a guest speaker. This month 19 members and guests met at the Runway Café in Greenville for an evening of fantastic food, writer talk, and information.

Our president Sally Handley started the meeting as is our custom, with a quick go-around the room of introductions. It’s always nice to share the good, the bad, and the ugly of our writing journeys—especially the good! Sally reminded us of our upcoming 30^th anniversary celebration on June 10^th, and also invited any member with news to share—such as contests, conferences, etc, to e-mail her, and she’ll be sure to spread the word to the rest of us.

And then, drum roll, please, our guest speaker took over. Jamie Mason was a hoot! And SO informative and helpful! Jamie described her books, Three Graves Full and Monday Lies, as “why-dun-its” as opposed to “who-dun-its,” and labeled them literary suspense. She explained that a new trend in publishing is this “blending of genres.” She also shared quite a few amusing anecdotes that inspired her stories, or at least got her imagination in gear. One idea: when she is brainstorming for a new story, Jamie scours newspaper headlines. She DOES NOT read the article, just the headlines, and asks herself if she can see a plot developing…

Soon Jamie was fielding questions, and as a traditionally-published author, she answered a lot of questions about the publishing business. She chose the traditional route because she wanted to see her books in bookstores and indie authors are less likely to have that opportunity. Jamie recommended a few websites such as AbsoluteWrite.com and AgentQuery.com, gave us tips about finding and working with an agent, and some more amusing and informative quips about the trials and tribulations of both good and bad reviews and working with a screenwriter. As far as the writing process, Jamie uses the “8-sequence screeenwriting” approach. She used to be a pantser, but now is a plotter. Jamie believes it saves a lot of time and effort and heartache to know where you’re going.

After thanking Jamie for her wisdom, insight, and humor, the meeting was adjourned until next time. We meet the first Thursday evening of every month. Come on down!

Respectfully Submitted,

Cindy Blackburn

Chapter Secretary

Chapter Meeting - April 6, Author Jamie Mason

Our guest speaker this month (Thursday, April 6th) is Jamie Mason, author of the “ripping good” (The New York Times) debut novel Three Graves Full.  Jamie’s second book, Monday’s Lies, was called “an elegant and compact literary thriller” by The Knoxville News Sentinel.

Jamie was born in Oklahoma City, but has always named Alexandria, Virginia and the greater DC metropolitan area as her hometown. She grew up in the shadow of the Pentagon (a shadow that is somehow darker and longer than the shade given off by lesser five-story buildings.) This might explain a few things about her suspicious nature.

A veteran nomad, Jamie has never grown attached to any particular piece of real estate. As such, her heart is home in several places scattered around DC, but also in Richmond, Virginia; San Diego, California; Asheville, North Carolina; and a whole list of places she's only visited. And a few of those, only in her mind.

She enjoys writing, reading, films, Formula 1 racing, NFL football, drinking whiskey, talking about things, and driving. She is addicted to coffee, and although her habit demands only two to three cups per day, let's just say you wouldn't want to be left standing between her and the carafe first thing in the morning. She is conflicted about time spent sleeping and resents speed bumps. Ticking clocks make her very irritable. Currently, Jamie lives with her husband and two daughters in the mountains of western North Carolina where she writes in a little room full of lovely things. And hopes.

The monthly Sisters in Crime meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 6th, at The Runway Café, 21 Airport Rd, Greenville, S.C.  Be there at 6:15 p.m. to meet Jamie Mason and enjoy chapter fellowship. Supper should be served at 6:30. Our speaker will begin right after new and old business at 7 p.m. Both dinner and the meeting are open to the public. 

In order for the Runway Café to speed service, dinner orders must be emailed by noon the day of the meeting. If you can't dine with us, we would still like to know you plan to attend so we can be sure you have a seat. If possible, please join us for dinner as our dinner orders help to ensure we can book our meeting room for free. To see the special menu for our group, please visit our website — www.sincupstatesc.blogspot.com  — and click on the Advance Order Menu tab at right.  Please e-mail your order to Ellis Vidler at  ellisvidler1@gmail.com.

If you place an order and do not attend or fail to cancel by noon, you will be charged for the meal. And like always, we'll enjoy it.

 Look forward to seeing you on April 6th.

 Sally Handley

Virus-free. www.avg.com

Minutes for Chapter Meeting, March 2, 2017

March 7, 2017

Creatures of habit, we met at our usual time and place—the first Thursday evening of the month, at the Runway Café in Greenville. And hungry creatures of habit, we enjoyed burgers, fries, sandwiches, and yes, some of us do salads, to fortify ourselves for the evening’s program. Twenty four people attended this month’s meeting, and we are all glad we did! 

As predicted, Sally Handley has settled comfortably and efficiently into her role as our new chapter president, and Sally started our meeting with the exceedingly good news that the grant she wrote was approved!! Yes, you read that right! Our Upstate SinC chapter has qualified for a $250 grant from SinC National to host our 30^th birthday party and workshop celebration. Great job, Sally! Be sure to save the date, June 10^th, to participate fully in what promises to be a superb day for our chapter at the Easley Public Library. Sally and the board will be seeking help as we finalize the plans, so please let us know what YOU can do to make the day festive, informative , and memorable. Marcia Talley is our guest speaker, and there will be cake! Like I said—save the date! 

Before introductions were made, member Steve Brown noted that it was new and different to have Sally at the helm, and led us in a well-deserved round of applause for our former chapter president, Howard Lewis, and his FIVE YEARS of service. Yay, Howard! 

After the casual (and always fun) round of introductions wherein each member says just a tiny bit about who they are and why they have so wisely chosen to attend our meeting that month, Sally wasted no time in introducing our guests, Steve MacLeod, an EMS paramedic with the Keowee Fire District, and Brandon Shirley, Assistant Fire Chief/Fire Marshall of the Keowee Fire District.  

What a team! Steve and Brandon enlightened us on a variety of topics relating to first responders—what kinds of problems, emergencies, and people they encounter, what a typical shift might entail, what challenges they face, and how first responders coordinate their work with fire, medical, and law enforcement personnel. They covered so much info, it is hard for this feeble secretary to summarize, but a few tidbits I myself found the most interesting:

 EMS personnel assess the SCENE they encounter, as well as the persons in need of medical help. The scene reveals a lot about what exactly the medical emergency might be. 

EMS’s goal is to get the sick person stabilized, in the ambulance, and moving toward the hospital in 10 minutes. 

Opiate overdoses are a huge problem in our communities. 

At a scene where a crime might have been committed, EMS personnel must be careful with crime evidence, in addition to dealing with the medical emergency. 

And, in case it’s not already obvious, EMS personnel are not paid enough! 

We had lots of questions for Steve and Brandon, and the meeting came to an end only when the staff of the Runway Café had to close up the restaurant.  

Respectfully Submitted,

Cindy Blackburn

Chapter Secretary