A couple times a year I get sidetracked. (My husband would say I do it more often than that, but I don’t remember asking for his input.) My reading, and writing, veer off-course to see what’s beyond the cozy forest as I explore what lies deep within the darkness—to the place where laughter and silliness don’t exist, but exceptional writing and storytelling still grasp hold and don’t let go. We all have a go-to genre, one that speaks to us the way no other does, yet just as in life, going outside the boundaries of our chosen lane allows us to experience another culture to enrich our daily lives. And I have to say, the choices I’m sharing today sweetened my reading venture – from a kiss of death to a trip through time, to the novellas of a genre king, and the threats of a haunted home, all of which brought me right back to my original trek – and a trip to Paris. I mean seriously, it’s Paris! I hope my selections inspire you to take a chance, a risk that will open your eyes to new possibilities…and then you can finish back in our cozy little corner….

That’s the single most common question I receive when I speak to reading groups. The thing is, it’s not an easy question to answer. There’s not one repository of ideas, nor can I point to one source of inspiration. My stories come from multiple sources–snippets of ideas, views, sounds, articles–that simmer in the slow cooker of my muse. Then wham! I have the story beginning and I start writing.Take my current trilogy. “An earthquake at San Quentin Prison precipitates the escape of several death row inmates.” Sounds easy, right? Well . . . it took me weeks to come up with the premise. The only thing I knew when I started KILLING FEAR (Feb 08) was that Detective Will Hooper, the partner of my heroine in SPEAK NO EVIL (Feb 07) was the hero. An article I read mentioned some California legislators talking about selling San Quentin–437 acres of prime real estate on the San Francisco Bay. I remembered that in SPEAK NO EVIL, I’d had Will testify at an appeal hearing against Theodore Glenn, a killer on death row who Will had put away seven years before for murdering four strippers. I re-read the scene where Will tells Carina…