Writing fiction is my escape. Whether to 17th Century Venice or Victorian England, I am immersed in another world, and charting a new adventure. Join me!
Author of the Agatha and Silver Falchion nominated Venice Beauties Mysteries.
I also enjoy writing short stories with unusual twists and sometimes with an art theme…
“The Assassin’s Portrait” in August 2022 Mystery Magazine marked the first appearance of the Victorian lady portraitist whose commissions include the assassination of the subject. It’s a twist on The Picture of Dorian Grey, since this lady’s talent with the brush brings the image of her subject to life in her paintings while they fade from existence in the real world.
The lady painter-assassin returns in “The Deadly Portrait” published in 2024 in Feisty Deeds: Historical Fictions of Daring Women. In this story, the artist’s empathy for a wife and her contempt for the husband who has commissioned the portrait, make her reluctant to complete her assignment.
I am not finished with this unusual lady yet, so stay tuned!
I love contributing to themed anthologies, and some of my favorite stories capture living in New York City today and in the past…
Murder New York Style is the anthology of the Tri-State New York Sisters in Crime, of which I am a member. My first short story ever published, “Laundry After Midnight” was in the 2022 anthology, Justice for All, Murder New York Style 5. It is one of the few stories set in present day, in the City That Never Sleeps, where doing your laundry after midnight is not unusual.
However, it is still out of the ordinary in New York City to witness the murder of a neighbor right down the hall through the peephole, as 12 year old Neil discovers.
In New York Sate of Crime, this year’s anthology of murderous tales of New York, “Murder at the Zeigfeld Follies” is filled with glamour, girls in sequins, savvy New York cops, and the murder of a show girl, right on stage in the middle of one of Mr. Zeigfeld’s fantasy tableaus.
Sometimes, I escape reality by devising a new one, where horrors may lurk or the famous solve crimes…
When I wrote, “Good Help is Hard to Find” and showed it to my husband, he threw the manuscript on the floor, and said, “This is terrible, don’t ever show it to anyone.” Of course, I didn’t listen and sent it immediately to the editors of Scare Street, which publishes some of my favorite horror stories. It was the fastest acceptance I ever got!
It’s the story of a couple with a magnificent Manhattan apartment who are triumphant when they find the perfect housekeeper. Magda keeps to herself and keeps the place in order, but soon, she starts appearing in their nightmares, and they begin to wonder whether she’s worth it.
The Guppies online chapter of Sisters in Crime called for stories about Murder on Holidays. My short story, “Casanova Takes a Holiday” features a very famous character from my favorite city of Venice, who investigates a murder while on holiday in Trieste.
Next up: a short story about the film star, Errol Flynn, and a lady PI who helps him find “Captain Bligh’s Sword” in the upcoming anthology, Celluloid Crimes.
I’ve been developing a whole bunch of adventures for Dorothy Dent, private eye and personal ‘fixer’ for Jack Warner. One set in Vegas, and another in Venice. Coming soon!
I started out as an illustrator, studying children’s book illustration with Maurice Sendak. I still love to paint, but find an easier release of creative energies with writing.
Frida Kahlo & Dolores Del Rio, by Nina Wachsman