Bad Habits

By Eileen Curley Hammond

I shoulda knowed it was a bad idea. At night when Frank was workin’, and the moon was new, I’d slip out in my house dress, sit on top of the portico where it was cool, and have a smoke with my Gin Rickey. I found out all kinds of interestin’ stuff that way. Who knew the baker and the seamstress were steppin’ out—me. And, what was that thing with the Fitzgeralds last year? Wooee. That was some donnybrook. I was the first on the block with that scoop. No one noticed me sittin’ there with my back against the brick or the warm glow of my cigarette.

Anyhow, the baby was howlin’ this morning,’ and Frank wanted his eggs sunny-side up. I cursed because it was hard to get them outta the pan in one piece. A yoke broke, and he laid into me somethin’ fierce. I tossed my apron on the chair, grabbed my hat, and slammed the door. A soft breeze wafted through the open hall window. I hadn’t ever climbed through in the daylight. I looked right and then left. “Just a quick cig, no one will notice.”

Well, it sure didn’t work out that way. Some nosy parker musta called the police. Next thing I know, sirens were blarin’, nets strung, and all other kinds of other folderol. Then this dolt tried to grab me, yelling, “Don’t jump, lady.” Like I was gonna. All I wanted was a moment of peace and quiet; just one single second to myself. Besides, what would Frank and the tyke do without me? They’d never make it, not even a week.

I beat the guy back with my favorite hat, straightened my dress, and pushed another copper to the side so I could climb back in the window. The crowd cheered, and I took a little bow—it sure wasn’t my usual Monday.

And the award goes to…

Buckeye Crime Writers would like to extend congratulations to one of our own. We can now introduce her as award-winning author Connie Berry, for her debut novel, “A Dream of Death,” took the gold medal – gold! – in the mystery category in the 2020 Independent Publisher Book Awards!

Ah, we can say we knew her when…

April showers…

A letter from BCW president Patrick Stuart:

…bring May flowers (or so the saying goes). Unfortunately, it has also brought more cancellations in our 2020 meetings. For May we were planning to help out with the Cincinnati Writing Workshop on Saturday, 5/16, the national “how to get published” workshop hosted by some of the former folks at Writer’s Digest. The workshop is, thankfully, still on, but instead of being in downtown Cincinnati it’s now online due to COVID-19. As a result, the BCW board will be sheltering in place in Columbus. However, if anybody’s still interested you can check out the details here: https://cincinnatiwritingworkshop.com/.

And as far as our events for June and beyond, we’re busily working on those. But be prepared for anything. Since our fortunes are tied to the Columbus Metropolitan Library and the Central Ohio Park System (where we rented a lodge for the day-long 6/20 meeting), we’re riding the waves along with everybody else, and we will keep you updated as we learn more. But in the meantime, as promised, we’re launching (drumroll): the BCW Writer’s Challenge! We changed it a little bit from the original concept, but that’s ok – change is good. In short, we provide the photo, you provide the story. That’s it. In 300–400 words, come up with something. Anything. Just a snippet of your imagination to keep those creative juices going. We’ll put your submission on the blog, along with the photo, then contact another volunteer at random. Note: we’re still accepting additional volunteers so if you’re interested please feel free to contact us. Otherwise, here’s the first installment to get things going: Rat Patrol.

Farewell to a friend

Here at Buckeye Crime Writers, we recently received news that our beloved friend and supporter of many years, Karen Harper, has passed away. For us, Karen will always be that OSU football fanatic, tireless in her love and care of her family, and a pillar in our local writing community. In addition to her writing and appearances, Karen was a co-founder of COFW (a local romance chapter, established in the 1980s) and held a chair on the advisory committee for the OSU library for ten years. Though she usually wintered in Naples, Florida, in recent years she’d moved back to Ohio on a full-time basis and became a more active BCW member. She was our first-ever speaker for our Holiday Luncheon, and spoke to our group anytime we invited her. Her work ethic and ability to professionally survive in the ever-changing landscape of publishing inspired us. Prolific in several genres –contemporary romantic suspense, Amish mysteries – her love for all-things-British was undeniable. Over her thirty-eight years of writing, her work, an impressive list of over seventy books, hit both the NYT and USA Today Bestsellers Lists. Always friendly, full of writerly wisdom, and energetic, her presence will be greatly missed across the Columbus writing community. We hope to honor her by continuing to read and promote her books (she has a new release: DEEP IN THE ALASKAN WOODS, and an upcoming, highly-anticipated release in May: THE QUEEN’S SECRET). What an enduring legacy. What a lady. Rest well, Karen.