The Val & Kit Mystery Series

Wednesday, February 29, 2012


BFFs: How We Got Our Start
You’ve heard of friends Rachel and Monica? Laverne and Shirley? Maybe even Lucy and Ethel? Soon, with a little luck and the help of this blog, you might come to know friends Val & Kit. But first, meet friends Roz and Patty.

Once upon a time, two (unbeknownst to each other) wannabe authors lived in Minnesota. Yep, their names were Roz and Patty. They met through mutual friend Lee, whom they both adored, in part because she was a real character, in the best sense of the word.

Not long after they met, Patty moved to South Dakota. Roz and Patty developed their friendship via letters (remember those things?) and occasional, all-too-expensive, long-distance phone calls (anyone in this day of unlimited long-distance remember THOSE?).

When Roz’s letters arrived, Patty read them aloud to her husband, and the couple chuckled frequently and even guffawed from time to time. When Roz read Patty’s letters to her husband, he said, “Point, point” – something Patty rarely got to. Not quickly, anyway.

Patty told Roz she should be a writer because of her keen Brit wit (Roz is a born-and-bred Londoner who now lives in Texas; but back to Minnesota and South Dakota for now). Roz told Patty that she had actually written short stories when she was a teen. Then Patty confessed that she, too, had written (unpublished) short stories and essays for Redbook Magazine and the like. So they each subscribed to Writer’s Digest and The Writer Magazine and began their writing careers in earnest. Separately.

They wrote and shared with each other their yet-to-be (soon-to-be?) published novels (watch for Trousseau and Tangled Webs – in the distant future, if not sooner). Then both came to a creeping if not screeching halt.

So one day Roz called Patty and said, “How about we start a writing exercise? I’ll go first and send you a segment, you can add a segment and send it back, and so forth. At least we’ll be writing.”

And write the friends did. After about 100 pages, one of the friends turned it into a murder mystery. After a few more pages, one of them said, “This is really good!” And thus the friends eventually finished their first co-authored novel. It wasn’t the first of the Val & Kit Mystery Series, but rather a stand-alone murder mystery. Aptly titled Segments, it also remains yet-to-be (soon-to-be?) published. The friends won’t define soon J but watch for it in the near or distant future, too.

For now, they’re busy trying to get the 2nd in the Val & Kit Mystery Series to their readers, who are clamoring for it. Seriously. And they’re busy pinching themselves.
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7 comments:

  1. That's awesome. I went to school w/ Mel. Friends are great!

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    1. Thanks so much for your comment, Wendi! Yes, nothin' like a friend!

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  2. Awesome, awesome, awesome. I write, and my mom and I "edit" together. We laugh more than we edit sometimes, but it's great fun!!

    Found you guys through the Author Karma group! My blog is here:
    http://color-me-read.blogspot.com/

    Sharon in Wisconsin :)

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    1. Hi, Sharon! Thanks so much for stopping by. We'll be checking out and following your blog, as well. We had to laugh when we read about you and your mom laughing more than editing. We can relate to that! Our favorite thing is to read our books out loud together-- not in chorus, but taking turns one page or chapter at a time:)Believe me, no one gets a bigger kick out of our books than we do :) We LOL A LOT!! We wish you and your mom many more precious laughs together!

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    2. Thanks for following my blog too!

      Confused here though, how do I FOLLOW this blog? I don't see a follow button. (except the email one)

      Sharon :)
      LOL-ing in Waupun!

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    3. Thanks too for the sweet comment on my blog! I responded there, but always wonder if the person I'm responding to actually ever sees it!
      I see you put up a Google Friend follower box! YAY! And now that I followed you, I'm totally tempted to put a new photo on my google profile. That is an old one...but who has the dang time???

      Sharon :)

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    4. Thanks for helping us figure things out! And we repeat: LOVE the clever name of YOUR blog: Color me read. Check it out, peeps!

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