October News: When Fiction Mirrors Real Life

In 1965-1966, my main interests were boys, learning how to drive and school, pretty much in that order. So I paid little attention to the news, never realizing how what was going on then in my city would mirror the novel I would write many years later.

You see, after my first Malone mystery was published, I learned something that actually gave me chills. From October 1965 to December 1966, a man attacked, raped and murdered seven Cincinnati women. He strangled them, using either an article of their own clothing or something that was readily available to him. With one exception, the women were attacked in their homes. The media dubbed him “The Cincinnati Strangler.”

The Cincinnati Police apprehended Posteal Laskey, a cab driver, after the last attack. He was arrested and convicted of the seventh murder. He never confessed to having committed any of the crimes but the attacks stopped when he was taken into custody. He died in prison in 2007.

If you’ve read Mixed Messages, much about The Cincinnati Strangler will sound familiar to you. Although I didn’t know about the real life case when I wrote my novel, there are so many similarities between what I wrote and what actually happened. Hence, the chills!

In the book, The Westwood Strangler attacks women in their homes and he uses whatever is at hand to strangle them – just like The Cincinnati Strangler. The Westwood Strangler is on the loose in a neighborhood on the west side of Cincinnati. All of The Cincinnati Strangler's victims were attacked within a few miles of Westwood. 

Without giving away my plot for those of you who haven’t read Unfinished Business, the sequel to Mixed Messages, I’ll let you in on a secret: the total number of victims for The Cincinnati Strangler and The Westwood Strangler is exactly the same!

Was it merely a coincidence that what I wrote all those years later so strongly paralleled what really happened? Or, even though I didn’t consciously remember the news stories, did my subconscious retain bits and pieces for all those years? I guess we’ll never know. 

Book trailer: http://youtu.be/ib9QTJItPA4

Buy link: http://tinyurl.com/o7wufnj 

In the Spirit of Halloween

My mystery/suspense novel, Mixed Messages, takes place the last week of October in 2008, which, of course, includes Halloween. As I was doing research for the book, I discovered some interesting facts about the combination secular and religious origin and history of the holiday.

The holiday we call Halloween originated with the ancient Celtic tribes who lived in Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Brittany. For the Celts, November 1 marked the beginning of the New Year and the coming of winter. The night before the New Year, they celebrated the festival of Samhain, Lord of the Dead, when they believed that the souls of the dead, including ghosts, goblins and witches, returned to walk among the living. In order to scare away the evil spirits, people would wear masks and light bonfires.

When the Romans conquered the Celts, they added a few rituals to the festival. They bobbed for apples and drank cider. However, in 835, Pope Gregory IV moved the celebration of what would be later called All Saints Day to November 1. The night before became known as All Hallow’s Eve. Eventually, the name was shortened to Halloween.

Stories of ghosts first became associated with Halloween in Ireland. The Irish believed that, if someone you knew had died the previous year and you were still holding a grudge against them, that person would appear to you on Halloween, startling you so badly that you would do anything to get rid of your grudge.

Our custom of trick-or-treating began in Ireland too. Groups of farmers would go door-to-door collecting food and materials for a village feast and bonfire. Those who gave were promised a good year; those who did not give got threats of bad luck.

Costumes were symbolic; they were meant to scare away the evil spirits so that the next day, on All Saints Day, the saints could celebrate without fear. And, the following day, All Souls Day, people could remember those who had died, especially in their immediate families, secure in the knowledge that they were at peace. When a large number of Catholic immigrants came to the United States, they brought the custom of trick-or-treating with them.

The custom of carving a pumpkin for Halloween also came from the Irish. People would hollow out turnips and place lighted candles inside to scare off the evil spirits. When the Irish came to America, they discovered the pumpkin and, because it was bigger, we now carve pumpkins instead of turnips for Halloween. We call the carved pumpkins jack-o-lanterns due to the legend of an Irishman named Jack who, as punishment for never having performed a single selfless act in his life, was forced to roam the earth with only a burning coal inside a pumpkin to light his way.

Happy Halloween!

Blurb or Excerpt?

I recently received a fantastic review for my first Malone mystery, Mixed Messages. The reviewer, Martha A. Cheves, author of several cookbooks including Stir, Laugh, Repeat, quoted a passage from the book at the beginning of her review. And, it got me thinking. Maybe that would be a better way to promote my books.

Traditionally, in the interest of keeping my post short when I’ve been a guest on another author’s blog, I’ve included the blurb from the back of the book but it never occurred to me to use an excerpt instead. So, I’ve decided to conduct a little experiment. Below, I’ve listed both the blurb and an excerpt from Mixed Messages and I would appreciate your opinion as to which of them is the most likely to entice you to read the book. Blurb or Excerpt?

Blurb:

It’s estimated that there are at least twenty to thirty active serial killers in the United States at any given time. There’s one on the loose on the west side of Cincinnati.

It’s the week of Halloween and Ann Kern struggles with several issues. Her primary concern is her marriage which, like her west side neighborhood, is in jeopardy. Her husband is drinking heavily and his behavior toward her is erratic. One minute, he’s the kind, loving man she married and, the next minute, he’s cold and cruel.

Ann dismisses a psychic’s warning that she is in danger. But, when she receives a series of ominous biblical quotes, she grows nervous and suspicious of everyone, including her own husband.

As the bizarre and frightening events unfold, Ann discovers a handmade tombstone marked with her name, pushing her close to the edge. Will she be the Westwood Strangler’s next victim?

Excerpt:

“Ann went directly to her grandmother's grave and stooped down to clear away the debris that covered the inscription on the tombstone. She heard a noise behind her that sounded like light footsteps making their way through the dried leaves and twigs... But there was no one there.

It's probably your imagination, she said out loud but, when the sun went behind a cloud, she shivered. Then, she heard the noise again... All of a sudden, a black cat sprang from the woods... 

As she turned back toward her grandmother's grave, she noticed a mound of freshly dug earth a few feet away. Curious, she went over and looked down. Her eyes opened wide and her hands flew to her mouth to stifle a scream. There, printed in bold black paint on a large rock were the words, "FUTURE HOME OF ANN KERN."