The Writing Life of an Avid Quilter

Torn Between Two (or more) Loves

Lately I have been asking myself, am I a writer or a quilter, an artist or a knitter.

The truth is, I am torn between loves. There's writing, which I have been doing for over twenty years.  Then there is quilting, painting, knitting and...well you get the point.  I am, at heart, an artist and all of my loves feature art in some form or other.  

Lately, most of my time has been devoted to making quilts or sewing face masks  for family.

BUT, the writer in me, being as persistent as she is, must be doing something productive as well.  That's just the way I roll.  

Consequently, I have been putting together a boxed set of my popular Helen Bradley Mysteries to offer on Amazon Kindle. 

An amazing deal!

 For a limited time pick up the entire set of
 The Helen Bradley Mysteries on Amazon for only $0.99 

The Story Behind the Story

Readers are often interested in how a story came to be.  Helen Bradley, ex-cop, grandmother and travel writer has an interesting history.

Helen Bradley first popped into my story world as the adventurous and mysterious grandmother of Jennie McGrady.  Jennie has her own mystery series and has been very popular with teens as well as adults.  In fact, her story, Silent Witness was nominated for an Edgar Allen Poe Award through Mystery Writer's of America. 

As one reviewer said:

"Helen is a charming character, reminiscent of Dorothy Gilman's Mrs. Pollifax, with the addition of a strong Christian faith to motivate her actions. This is the first book in the Helen Bradley series, but characters may seem familiar through Rushford's young adult mystery series featuring Jennie McGrady. " 

________Library Journal on Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep.

 My publisher asked if I could create a series based on Jennie's grandmother, Helen Bradley, and I was thrilled to comply.  The series did well but eventually was declared out of print.  I did what many of my writer friends do, got the rights back and revised, edited and published them on Amazon, first as Kindle editions and then in paper.

The books have received high praise and reviews like this one:

"A gripping work that will appeal to all fans of the mystery genre." __________Midwest Book Review

The Helen Bradley Mysteries: Books 1-5

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep 

Helen Bradley, ex-cop, grandmother and travel writer, learns that a prominent gerontologist has been murdered. When the doctor's widow also dies, Helen checks herself into a convalescent home to discover the truth surrounding the mysterious deaths. Edgewood Manor is the perfect place for Helen to recover from a gunshot wound and do a little detective work. Good plan--as long as she doesn't die in her sleep. (Originally book one in the series)

Kindle Price $3.99

Paperback $9.99

Red Sky in Mourning

Helen receives an assignment to write a guide book about the Long Beach Peninsula on the Washington coast. What begins as research, ends up being a criminal investigation as she teams up with Coast Guard, investigator, Adam Jorgenson, to discover a fisherman's dark secret and his murderer.

Kindle Price $3.99

Paperback $9.99

A Haunting Refrain

Helen is summoned to her Uncle Paddy's estate and renowned spa for a family meeting. When her dear eccentric uncle dies, Helen is determined to find out who killed him and why. Was the killer a ghost as everyone suspects or is the ghost being set up to take the fall?

Kindle Price $3.99

Paperback $9.99

When Shadows Fall

A walk on the beach turns tragic when Helen discovers a body pinned beneath a tree-sized driftwood. The body is identified as the Mayor, but his death is no accident. He was murdered and the evidence points straight to Helen's best friend.

Kindle Price $3.99

Paperback $9.99

The Story That Came Before the Story

Death on Arrival is a  prequel to the original series. The new Helen book takes place prior to Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, Red Sky in Mourning, A Haunting Refrain and When Shadows Fall.

While writing this prequel, which is a novella, I had fun revisiting Helen and all of her haunts and hope you will too. I enjoyed reacquainting myself with Helen's best friend Rosie, owner of Pastimes, my favorite coffee shop/book store, and Joe Adams, the handsome young sheriff who respects Helen's investigative skills and isn't afraid to ask her for assistance.

Of course, while writing I wished I could have been living in Helen's lovely Cape Cod home at the beach near Lincoln City. One of the perks of being a writer is living vicariously through your characters. 

Death on Arrival (A Prequel)

Helen returns to her beach home on the Oregon coast after a month-long honeymoon in Europe to find her door ajar, her house ransacked, and the body of her house-sitter in the back yard. Hardly a proper homecoming, but semi-retired cop, Helen Bradley, is determined to put her house in order and find the killer at all costs.

Kindle Price only $2.99

Paperback $7.99

Still Writing After All These Years

Many of my fans are asking for a new book.  I'd love to comply. In fact, I do have a mystery in the works.  My character, Amber Stone is losing patience with me.  It seems recovering from heart surgery takes longer than one would think.  So...I am setting some goals.  I will put in time writing at least three days a week and see if I can solve the mystery Amber is embroiled in.  Death At the Alter really needs to be written and Amber Stone needs closure. Wouldn't you agree?

Blessings and happy reading,