All kinds of decisions (and a hundred indecisions, to paraphrase T.S. Eliot) go into the plotting of a mystery. For example, as I was deciding upon the plot points for UNSEEMLY FATE, book 7 of the Concordia Wells Mysteries, I knew I needed a rare literary artifact that would be compatible with the lady professor’s interests (primarily Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and the Romantic poets). It was to be a gift from one of Concordia’s new relatives – a RICH relative (I think you can see where I might be going with this), which would set off a chain of catastrophic events that sends Concordia scrambling for the rest of the story.
I had one other proviso: the item couldn’t be SO rare that people would be giving it the squinty-eye and asking how the heck the rich man came to have it, and didn’t it belong in a proper museum, rather than a private gallery at some women’s college? Hmm???
What did I decide upon, and why? Read the rest here, at Misterio Press.
P.S. – Just a reminder…to celebrate the release of UNSEEMLY FATE, I have two giveaways still going on for FREE audiobooks and ebooks/paperbacks! Details on my home page and at Misterio Press. Anyone can enter! Contests end May 15th.
Very cool. Did you have to wear museum gloves when you handled the book? Inquiring minds want to know.
Patricia Rickrode
w/a Jansen Schmidt
It’s funny you mention gloves…I fully expected to be required to wear something, and asked the librarians there. They said gloves are only worn for handling metal objects, so that acids from the skin don’t corrode the metal. Wearing gloves for handling books, however, can do more harm than good, as it affects touch sensitivity and the person is more likely to accidentally tear a page in the process. But those little strings you see in the close up pic? (check full post on Misterio Press, but I’ll see if I can add it here, too). Those are special weights used to hold the book open safely while it’s on the stand, so as to not damage the spine (they call them “worms”). Thicker weighted sock-like tubes (called “snakes”) are used for the larger books. Cool, huh?
Here’s the pic I was referring to, Patricia:
Well how neat is that? Huh? Learn something new every day.
Thanks for sharing.
Patricia