This Mystery is Collaborative fiction. It is written by a group of authors who share creative control of a story.
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The Deadly Water Hazard
A Cactus of the Valley Mystery
AVAILABLE at Amazon
In Cactus of the Valley things are not as peaceful as they seem. When a body is found in a submerged golf cart, is it an accident or is it murder?
With plenty of resident suspects, all with motives resulting from conflicts with the victim, the path to solving this mystery is full of twists and turns. And everyone has something to hide.
What do an angry grandma, a tormented golf partner, a chef with a past, and a secretive waitress have in common? And what about the browbeaten spouse?
Will the snoopy spinster’s sleuthing skills help or hinder the investigation as detective Peterson uncovers the clues? Will this once tranquil community play through this handicap and get out of the rough?
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Author Description:
Paige Terner is the pen name for a group of writers who meet weekly in a senior community very similar to Cactus of the Valley. Meetings usually consist of writing on an assigned topic, or in response to a challenge. Activities are varied, and the writers’ levels span the gamut from beginners to published authors with a wide range of interests. What they have in common is an interest in writing and the willingness to share their work with the rest of the group
One day someone had a brilliant idea for a long-term project: a group written mystery story. Easy, right? Outline a basic plot, insert characters, divide into sections, and assign one to each writer. Voila! In two or three months, put them together and out will pop a story. That’s what we thought! Three years later, it didn't exactly just pop out, but it did materialize as The Deadly Water Hazard, a story to be proud of. Here are our comments on the experience.
Working with this group of talented, creative writers was a delight. The project was a learning experience for everyone involved. We had fun making up scenes and dialogues and watching our characters come to life. We improved our writing skills. We learned to give and receive constructive criticism as we problem solved together. Above all, the group stayed committed to “getting ‘er done” without forsaking quality or wrecking relationships in the process.
Emerson said, “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” Our writing group’s journey has been a wild ride and a wonderful gift. Without the guidance of our fearless leader and dedicated editing team, we would have been adrift. Writing is easy; editing is tough. Our Joy of Writing group members are the best editing team an aspiring writer could have. But I do have to add, arriving at our destination has been a joy.
Author Genre: Christian, Nonfiction, Memoir, Cozy Mystery
Website: Judy A. Knox
Twitter: @JudyAKnox
E-Mail: judy@judyaknox.com
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Amazon Author Profile and Book List
Author Description:
Judy Knox is a retired high school teacher who now teaches Christians how to enjoy a more vibrant walk with God by discovering His goodness in everyday life. Her books, devotionals, and blog posts encourage and inspire readers to find positive aspects to even those negative situations we all encounter from time to time. She always enjoyed writing, but began pursuing it seriously after her husband passed away in 2012.
Originally from the Midwest, Judy began escaping to Arizona for three winters before settling in as a year-round resident in 2017. Her son and daughter (both married) and six grandchildren still live in the Chicago area. She hopes that eventually they will relocate in a more southwesterly direction.
Although she would like more time with her family, she delights in the warm Arizona weather and her life in an active senior community. Social, educational, recreational, and musical opportunities about there, and she participates in a little of everything. As leader of their Joy of Writing Group, she spearheaded the group-written cozy mystery novella, The Deadly Water Hazard, published on Amazon under the pen name Paige Terner.
In addition to writing, she learned to play the cello at age 72 and performs occasionally with some smaller groups. A 2021 graduate of Charis Bible College, Phoenix, AZ, with an Associates Degree in Biblical Studies and a ministerial certificate, she teaches Bible study groups in her home, Future projects include a second devotional book similar to Dewdrops of Grace, many blog posts, and several new books that are in various stages of progress.
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Amazon Author Profile and Book List
Author Description:
Doreen grew up in West Branch, Iowa and graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls with a BA and MA in Education. She taught Jr.High/High School Language Arts for eight years until she began teaching at the Community College for the rest of her career. Reading and Writing have always been a passion for her and joining the Joy of Writing group in Fountain of the Sun has been a highlight in her retirement. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, scrapbooking, card making, spending time with her critters, and family. She and her husband still farm in Iowa and winter in Arizona.
Emerson said, “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” Our writing group’s journey has been a wild ride and a wonderful gift. Without the guidance of our fearless leader and dedicated editing team, we would have been adrift. Writing is easy; editing is tough. Our Joy of Writing group members are the best editing team an aspiring writer could have. But I do have to add, arriving at our destination has been a joy.
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Website: Leia’s Adventures Ring of Change
Amazon Author Profile and Book List
Author Description:
Pam Crawford joined the Joy of Writing Club as it was putting the pieces of the book together. It was like creating a patch-work quilt but with too many pieces or the wrong sizes. She became one of the editors of The Deadly Water Hazard and is responsible for the title. Her entry won the book-naming contest in the community newspaper.
Pam is a retired attorney and lives in Bismarck, North Dakota with her husband Jay. A few years ago, they decided to spend winters in Mesa, Arizona where they settled into a condo at the Fountain of the Sun. Pam proceeded to write, capturing life experiences which she often reads to the writing club.
She wrote and published a children’s book in 2021 “Leia’s Adventures: Ring of Change.”
She had many adventures of her own: being a governess in New York City; working on an archeology dig at Fort Union near her hometown, Willison, North Dakota; going to college and learning to snow ski in the Seattle area (after one season on the bunny hill) and attending Law School in her 50’s after raising two boys. She says going back to school later in life was the best adventure so far because she found new passion and purpose. It also had been a life-time dream. Writing the book was the second dream come true.
Her sons want more Leia adventures so that may be in the works this year.
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Author Description:
Larry Meath is a retired educator and a graduate of Oregon State University with a degree in English. He received his MAT in English Education from Northern Arizona University which started his love for Arizona. Larry taught middle school English for 29 years before moving to the University of Alaska for another 12 years. His first book, Trustworthy Liars, is a memoir of fishing in Alaska with two lifelong friends. He now transitions between Alaskan summers and Arizona winters with his wife, Stephanie, and their two pets.
Writing a mystery by committee posed challenges, rewards, and gratitude. Gratitude goes to Judy for an incredible amount of work just to keep this project going. At times it seemed a bit like herding cats. Challenges were embedded in the gratitude.
Combining a dozen or so writers with varying styles and ideas necessitated a degree of humility, not to mention patience. But in the end I think we all felt rewarded with the product, not to mention our ability to see this through. If we had known from the outset how difficult it would be, I'm not sure we would have started it in the first place.
Author: Carol Redmore
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Author Description:
Working as a team to write The Deadly Water Hazard was invaluable; in addition, it was fun. It was a challenge when some in our group who are snowbirds returned to home states in the summers, making it hard to stay in rhythm. The arrival of Zoom this past year helped greatly, as we juggled characters and time lines and made many changes.
The camaraderie of working toward one goal was a great pleasure, and strong leadership from Judy kept us in line. I learned so much about writing techniques and editing. The experience was a treasure!
Author Genre: Cozy Mystery
Author Description:
Grammie Jo would be proud to know Martha Jo followed in her footsteps making a name for herself by punching the keys on the ole typewriter found under a pile of bedding in the guest room closet. I can just hear her now: “Who’da thunk it?”
Besides taking care of a family of seven plus working a full-time job “building a power plant,” she managed to squeeze out time to put pen to paper fulfilling requirements for a seat in the front row of a group of writers called “Joy of Writing.”
Martha Jo loves to write. Poems come easily; segments of family history are varied and actually complement those of her brother. She dabbled in creative writing, just to see what would end up on the pages. Upon discovering her mother’s college scrapbook, she delighted in twinges experienced when her writings mimicked those of her mother’s.
She majored in business because her dad insisted she learn a skill she could “fall back on,” but minored in English, her first love. Being published in a book gave her the boost she needed to pursue her goals.
Martha Jo participates in Joy of Writing as time permits.
"My first question when someone suggested writing a murder mystery as a class project was, “Where do you start?” One Joy of Writing participant suggested we set the murder in a 55+ adult park, similar to ours.
Never having considered a novel, my first thought was that it would be simply a continuation of any story written for an assignment. I learned quickly that there would be a myriad of pieces that would need to be carefully put into place. Part of the challenge was learning that those various pieces were called “back stories,” “vignettes,” and something called a “denouement.” I learned that writing a murder mystery was far more complicated than I ever imagined. More than just a plot, there are characters to create.
As time went on and various parts of the mystery moved forward, my interest in participating intensified. It was reassuring to see more pieces of the puzzle being put out there to consider. Interestingly enough, the deletion of those extraneous words, which only “take up space,” was of interest to me. I especially like the word “camaraderie” when it applies to the Joy of Writing writers!"
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Editor: Donna Dunn
ReplyDeleteI pay tribute to the writer's for the merging of their characters to compose our book. Editing brought good transitions. Group editing had its challenges but the end result was the finished product. It is like the sum and the difference in math. You add. You subtract. The end result is a book.