Tag: houston

The End of Summer

When our friend John (who I can think of only as Johnnie) left his job at Borders last spring to go to work at Murder By the Book, I was thrilled for him. I became familiar with the Houston bookstore through writer Dean James (who I first met in a Yahoo writers’ group). Dean has never failed to give me sound advice and encouragement, writer to writer, but among the best gifts he ever gave me was my first welcome to Murder By the Book, where he then worked as manager.

Anyone who shops at the store will tell you that it’s like a home where an extended family drops in to talk–about books or writers or whatever other random topic comes to mind. It’s a little paradise for a reader, because anyone on the staff can direct you to authors similar to those you already enjoy, introduce you to new writers whose works are destined to become mystery classics, or help you find older writers whose work you might have overlooked.

I knew the store would be a place where Johnnie could enjoy what he loves best about books and bookselling. He’d be working with like-minded people, including McKenna Jordan–who bought the store from its original owner in 2009. Like Dean, McKenna has on occasion been my go-to person when I come up with ideas for new novels. It’s fun to watch them go through their mental filing cabinets when I ask, Has this been done before? They always know.

Then there’s McKenna’s husband, David Thompson, who worked at Murder By the Book for twenty-one years. When Dean told David about my Houston-based A Coventry Christmas, David said the store would host a signing. I told him nobody gets murdered in the novel, but he said it didn’t matter. I’m a Houston author and the store is always happy to support local writers.

I was scheduled to sign with two crime novelists, Colleen Thompson and L.A. Sparks in December 2006. When I told McKenna I was sending out postcards to my mailing list to promote the signing, she said, “Bring the cards in. We’ll stamp them for you.” She was amused at my shocked reaction. I was so accustomed to doing all the Timothy James Beck publicity that it never occurred to me a bookseller would take on some of that. David and McKenna not only hosted that signing, but they kept my books in stock so I could sign them whenever I came into the store. David occasionally nudged me to write something else so we could do another signing, and he also indulged my reading lust by introducing me to several new mystery series that he thought I’d like.

At Dean’s most recent signing, as I was paying for my books, Johnnie mentioned that I’d get home in time to watch Project Runway. He told David how I do the show’s challenges by making doll clothes. David said he wasn’t sure he was going to enjoy this season, and we critiqued the show for a few minutes. I was reminded of how tickled Lindsey and Rhonda get whenever Tom talks fashion. Project Runway has apparently made more than one straight man a fashion critic.

The next day, I received a direct message on Twitter from Murder By the Book: David here… last night’s PROJECT RUNWAY was *much* better! 🙂

I was looking forward to going back to the store with a couple of dolls dressed in my designs to make David laugh.

Monday, at age 38, David died unexpectedly. Though I didn’t know him well, I know by the measure of my own sadness that his loss is devastating to those who know and love him best. The comments on the store’s Facebook page, on Twitter, and on so many blogs of authors, booksellers, and readers around the country are a testament to how highly esteemed David, McKenna, Dean, and the store’s entire staff are.

This is the kind of mystery we never unravel–when someone so full of joy and enthusiasm, so beloved, is taken away too early. My summer has been bookended by two such losses, and my heart goes out to all those who mourn them.


David Thompson
1971–2010

A bit of art and link love

Tim posted a photo the other day of a little work of art that Lindsey and Rhonda brought back from their trip to Columbus, Ohio. I thought some of you might like to see my gift from them, too.


Actual size 4×6 inches.

Ah, how things have changed since the era of Glorious Technicolor. The artist of these whimsical works is Paul Volker, and I highly recommend a visit to his site, volkerworld. com. Just a little bit of exploring will take you to classics like “Loch Ness Bacon.”

Tim also placed an order at Maine Days Designs, and Kate, the artisan and proprietor, included this pendant for me when she sent his merchandise:


Actual size 1×1 inch.

Seriously, GO TO HER ETSY SITE (linked above) and check out her jewelry, which I love. As for map pendants, Kate will design and make custom orders. Wouldn’t that be a great gift for sharing the memory of a place you’ve been with a friend or loved one? Or maybe remind someone of a place you’ve dreamed of going together?

Earlier this year, I became acquainted with the work of Houston artist Gilbert Ruiz through his Draw 365 Group on his Flickr site. As I once told him, when I want to relax, I like to launch a slide show of that set and listen to whatever my iTunes randomly plays while I watch. There was one sketch I kept going back to, and finally I begged him to let me buy it. I’ve had it quite a while and still haven’t framed it–I need to take care of that. Meanwhile, I’m glad to share it with you:


Actual size is 12×12 inches.

Something interesting that I didn’t realize until I took out the sketch to shoot it was the date Gilbert drew it: March 4. That’s my mother’s birthday–one of those funny coincidences that makes me feel close to her. I think she’d have enjoyed Gilbert’s art, especially the darkly humorous vein running through many of the sketches.

Saturday night I visited a new place (to me): H Gallery on 19th Street in the Houston Heights. I went because a couple of Gilbert’s paintings are hanging there, and I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the other work, too. I will definitely be keeping up with their installations and going back to visit.

Please click here for Images from H Gallery.

And another one’s gone.

I can’t even begin to number how many movies I’ve seen at the Angelika. Independent films, art films, even some big releases. Tom and I used to meet James with Joe and maybe Steve V for dinner and a movie. The cafe was fun, with interesting food and good people watching. Some nights you’d spy a Houston athlete or a member of ZZ Top at another table. This is the theater where I trained myself to buy bottled water instead of Coke–but I still bought popcorn.

The hue and cry you heard from the direction of Houston this past Sunday was the shocked reaction to this note on the door:

Some of my Thursday

Seriously, you can’t take me anywhere. Tonight, I was THAT person. I got to Murder By the Book for Dean James’s signing of his new cozy mystery Murder Past Due, written as Miranda James, in time to enjoy some conversation with him and get a hug from Johnnie beforehand. Then I turned the sound off on my phone. Only I DIDN’T! I must have forgotten that vital last step, “Set,” because in the middle of Dean’s story to a VERY good crowd, my dumb cell began to ring. Which meant I had to scramble in my purse and find the thing and turn it off–it took an eternity. Sorry Dean and readers. I’m a moron.

Still, it was a wonderful night, because that’s the only way Murder By the Book knows how to do an event.


David introducing Dean with accolades from other mystery writers.


Kinley and John, two members of the best staff you’ll find at any bookseller anywhere.


Dean had a gratifyingly large audience and a long line to get books signed. In addition to Murder Past Due, he signed his Trailer Park Mystery series (written as Jimmie Ruth Evans), and his short story in the Delta Blues collection. Delta Blues includes well-loved writers (James Lee Burke, John Grisham, Ace Atkins, Charlaine Harris, Suzanne Hudson, Bill Fitzhugh, Suzann Ellingsworth, Tom Franklin and Beth Ann Fennelly, Mary Saums, Lynne Barrett, Dean James, Les Standiford, Toni L.P. Kelner, and Carolyn Haines), plus new authors (Alice Jackson, David Sheffield, Nathan Singer, Michael Lister, and Daniel Martine), and contains an introduction by Morgan Freeman. A portion of every book sold will go to Freeman’s Rock River Foundation, an organization that promotes literacy and provides grants to assist schools.

One thing I’ve found concerning recent changes to my health is that I MUST EAT when it’s time to eat or I get…cranky. Very cranky. So I was not amused to get home to find someone’s car blocking the drive into The Compound. A simple phone call and my problem would have vanished courtesy of the HPD’s choice of a tow truck. Instead, through some eel-like maneuvering, I was able to get my car inside the gate. Then I left this poster on the offending vehicle’s windshield: