Blunders

I recently read a good mystery in which the author made reference to the Niagara Escarpment’s  Precambrian Shield geology… the problem being, the Bruce Peninsula’s exposed rock formations are not at all connected to the Precambrian Shield.  Come evening I mentioned the book’s misstep to Jane, my wife. She felt I was nitpicking. Then again she wasn’t a geography major.

Same evening, we watched Sam Gamgee free his pack horse before entering the mines of Moria (Lord of the Ring trilogy, movie 1). But wait…. the ‘Fellowship’ had no pack horse on their journey to the mines (unlike the book). This time, Jane and I went to bed agreeing that was indeed a big blunder.  

But nothing compares with William Shatner’s cover of ‘Lucy in the Skies with Diamonds.’

Twain Insanity

Been away from book stuff for a few weeks while my wife was laid up, so I took the opportunity to read some nonsensical sketches by Mark Twain (published in 1903). His ‘Personal Habits of Siamese Twins’ gave us a bad case of the giggles… particularly the part describing their roles in the Civil War: you see, twin Eng joined the Union side and twin Chang the Confederate side. Once in battle, they managed to capture each other. When a Tribunal couldn’t determine who exactly was the captor and who was the captive, the solution was to consider them both caught and to work out a prisoner exchange. 

Just a Penny

In addition to a notice for a subscription to History Magazine (love it), my father-in-law included an old penny with my birthday card. Our phone conversation afterward:

‘I found it,’ he said. ‘There’s a story behind this coin.’

‘Probably.’

‘There is,’ he said, forcefully. Translation… not ‘probably.’

So, I wrote a short piece, which a number of people seem to like. If you want a copy, get in touch at jrhundey@sympatico.ca. and I’ll send one along.

couldn’t get the real coin in focus.

The Importance of a good sitting spot

Spent a week with a bunch of my family at a Muskoka cottage. On our last day, I said, sadly, to my daughter and daughter-in-law, ‘I need more time so I can sit in all the places I want to sit’ … which caused them to pretty much keel over. I didn’t get a chance to explain… due to the subsequent wise cracks. You see, there were three near perfect spots where I was able to sit and let my mind go blank (tonic for the brain) or in the alternative, to sit and let writing ideas come to life (setting can be a big stimulant). But I missed recharge opportunities and squandered plot sparks simply because I never got around to sitting in three other near perfect spots… unless I just resent not having tried out all six sitting spots for my evening Scotch.  

Returning home from my walk I came across this critter which decided the cool water in this birdbath was meant for him.

Vintage Mystery

Clearing 30 years-worth of stuff… it’s hard to let things go, even something like a beat-up copy of ‘The Circular Staircase,’ a 1908 mystery by Mary Roberts Rinehart. The book makes me smile… with its chapter headings ‘An Eggnog and a Telegram,’ ‘A Tramp and the Toothache’ and ‘When Churchyards Yawn.’ Then there are etchings of characters in Victorian dress and of candle-lit rooms (electricity was still new). My favourite is of a young couple embracing over the caption, “There is no use mincing matters – he was kissing her.”  Quite racy for the time. So nope, I’m keeping it.

Jack Beer and Terry Fox

As I wrapped up my first book, Death at the Bend, I realized I wanted Jack Beer to live on and so my detective mystery series began. And while I’m likely conning myself, I’m gonna say, ‘I’ve been pretty successful.’ In her London Free Press review, Joan Barfoot spoke well of my work. People (many of whom I’ve not previously met… honest!) have sought me out to tell me such things as: You made me laugh out loud, I couldn’t put it down, and I was surprised by the twists and turns.  

On the other hand, self-publishing, for me anyway, is small scale. You see, I’m an awful marketer and it’s the writing part I love. But even though my book income is unimpressive, I have been able to support various charities with my proceeds. And in the last two years, all of my profit has gone to the Terry Fox Foundation. The point is, I’d like to elevate my support for that worthy cause… which means I need to actually devote some time to marketing… starting with my website.

So, could you spread the word please?

PS. In case you wondering (and even if you weren’t) I draw on real places for my settings. And sometimes I do a watercolour… to get in the mood. The one below is the farmhouse in which Annie (from Things Left Behind) sought escape from her troubles. The painting emerged from two locations, one in Essex County and the other northwest of Exeter.  

Guilty

The Stephen Truscott story always fascinated me, even from the time I was a young kid and saw his picture on the front of the Windsor Star weekly magazine. His murder trial has been covered from every angle with one exception - what went through the minds of the jury members? How did it affect them to decide the fate of a fourteen year old boy? Of course it is too late to ask now. So, I fictionalized a single jurist’s reflections and entered the Stratford Rotary Club Short Story Contest, winning a fourth place for ‘Guilty.’

If you’d like to read this ditty, it’s available now as a free ebook. Click here for the EPUB version and here for the free PDF.

On Collingwood Fakeout (a comment emailed to me from Leigh, Lucan’s Librarian.)

“A patron took me aside to rave about Collingwood Fakeout. Each time she thought she’d figured out ‘who dunnit’ she soon realized otherwise. She loved the dialogue… and the main characters, PI Jack Beer and his girlfriend Sheila… Jack for recognizing his own flaws and Sheila for giving as good as she got.”

I’m no artist but for fun, I do watercolours now and then. These two are scenes from Fakeout, the first is of Sheila going for a dip in Georgian Bay and second sees Jack and Sheila coming to grips with tragedy.