Rex's Blog

Talk on E-Publishing

Rex Burns — Sat, 19 May 2012 16:22:32 GMT

Spoke last night to a very friendly audience on e-publishing from scanning print copy to the use of social media sites. Friends of the University Library (Boulder) hosted and asked many good questions.

Huffington Post Article

Rex Burns — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 18:51:35 GMT

Those interested in the craft of writing might find "Fact From Fiction" helpful. It appears in the Huffington Post publication for 3 April 2012 under the banner "HuffPost Books: The Blog," and offers a look at the use of actual court documents as a foundation for character and plot in the Edgar-winning novel, "The Alvarez Journal."

Longmont Library Bookfest

Rex Burns — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 18:29:24 GMT

If you're in the area, drop by the Longmont (Colorado) Library Book festival to be held Friday, 13 April 2012, 1 to 5 p.m. I'll be there along with a number of other regional writers to celebrate books, talk with readers, and--merely by coincidence--even have a few autographed titles for sale. Please join us: 409 4th Avenue, Longmont, CO.

E-Books Recently Published

Rex Burns — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 18:20:42 GMT

Mysterious Press/Open Road has recently brought out fifteen titles from my backlist, available from Mysterious Press.com as well as from most major e-publishers. The titles include the entire "Gabe Wager" series (The Alvaez Journal, The Farnsworth Score, Speak for the Dead, Angle of Attack, The Avenging Angel, Strip Search, Ground Money, Killing Zone, Engandered Species, Blood Line, and The Leaning Land). Also included are the "Devlin Kirk"
books: Suicide Season, Parts Unknown, and Body Guard. Plus, When Reason Sleeps, published under the name "Tom Sehler." Please visit <mysteriouspress.com> homepage, or any of the individual titles.

Constable Leonard Smith

Rex Burns — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 18:08:11 GMT

The latest short story featuring Constable Leonard Smith of the Kimberley, West Australia Police,"Constable Smith and the Lost Dreamtime," will appear in the October 2012 issue of "Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine." It should be available to subscribers and on stands in August.

MWA-University

Rex Burns — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:14:46 GMT

Just returned from participating in the "Mystery Writers of America University" event in San Francisco, and am very impressed with both the participating speakers and the attendees. A full day of talks and exercises on writing generated a lot of discussion and good questions. The focus was on the craft of writing rather than sales, and, like the audience, I learned a great deal from my fellow speakers.

Plans are being made for a day in the Denver area next year, and I heartily recommend the function to anyone who is interested in writing, whether it be the mystery genre or other forms of fiction. The MWA home page will have information about this and other venues for the "MWA-U."

"Dark Horizons"

Rex Burns — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 16:56:00 GMT

The fifth Constable Leonard Smith short story--"Dark Horizons"--is due in the June "Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine," on shelves in late April.

Resurfacing

Rex Burns — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 15:23:24 GMT

The last year has been a tough one; may the coming year be better. "Dark Horizons," the next Leonard Smith story, has been submitted to "Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine," with hopes of acceptance in the near future; and "Frog Tales," two volumes of aphoristic fables are now available through Audible.com. Please download a sample story by entering "Rex Burns" on their search panel. Meanwhile, longer manuscripts are with my agent and looking for a home--a novel of the Civil War homefront "Into Enemy Arms," a wry yarn of revolution in Latin America, "The Better Part of Valour," and two (count them: two) novels in the new "Touchstone Series": "Body Slam" and "VLCC." Whether they see print (or eprint or audible or . . . ) is problematic as always, given the vicissitudes of publishing, but hope is eternally springing.

"Constable Smith and the Bone Pointer"

Rex Burns — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 16:15:00 GMT

"Constable Smith and the Bone Pointer" will be appearing in the October issue of the "Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine" for October '09--it goes on sale July 28 and will be available on the stands throughout August.

I will be a guest on the INDenver on-line newspaper on 17 July 09, 2 pm MDT to talk about writing in general and mystery writing in particular. You are welcome to join in: http://www.indenvertimes.com/insider-channel.

A new Leonard Smith yarn

Rex Burns — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 20:49:00 GMT

Forthcoming in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine later this year is a new Leonard Smith story, "Constable Smith and the Bone Pointer." Trying to unravel the circumstances surrounding a mysterious death in the bush, Smith is confronted by "a man of high degree" whose shamanistic magic challenges Smith's logic.

One Book One Denver

Rex Burns — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:41:00 GMT

Please join me on Thursday, 25 September, at the University of Colorado at Denver, King Center Recital Hall, 855 Lawrence Way on the Auraria Campus for a discussion of "Dashiell Hammett and the Hardboiled Detective Genre," sponsored by Colorado Humanities & Center for the Book: 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Talk on Writing

Rex Burns — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 17:12:00 GMT

For interested readers and writers in the Denver area, I will be giving an informal talk at the Loveland (CO) Public Library for their "Authors at the Library" presentation and discussion series titled, "These Books Are Killing Me: Writing and Reading Suspense & Mystery in a New Century." Date and time: Sunday, 4 May, 2 - 4 p.m. Place: 300 N. Adams, Loveland, CO 80537. Topic: Developing Series Characters. We'll have plenty of time for questions from readers and writers. For further information, please call Ted Schmidt at 970-962-2400.

Puzzle and plot

Rex Burns — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 21:38:00 GMT

The writer of mystery and detection fiction must emphasize puzzle, which should not be confused with plot. The
Whodunit of puzzle is often related to the plot element of Why it was done, and thus the ease of confusion. But whereas the mystery writer deals with both plot and puzzle, readers are often interested primarily in puzzle, while plot is only on the fringe of their attention. Writers must keep in mind this difference in emphasis, since puzzling elements such as red herrings or suspicious characters may or may not be integral to the story's basic plot.

Fiction v. Real Life

Rex Burns — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 17:11:00 GMT

It is a truism that fiction writers seek and find ideas for their stories in real life--where else could they find them? But the newspapers, diaries, personal memoirs, etc., that record that real life seldom result in a story with the focus and depth of fiction. The factual reports may provide the events of a story, but "plot" and that closely related element "character" tend to come from the fiction writer's imagination. That imagination is the tool by which factual happenings are converted into a story with structure and purpose: inventing fictional characters who perform the actual deeds, discovering motivations that were obscure or absent from the factual report, structuring the factual events into the shape of a meaningful conclusion. Though this sounds rather cut and dried, it is this exercise of the fiction writer's imagination that generates excitement and fun for the author and, one hopes, for the reader.

Research in Oz

Rex Burns — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 19:27:00 GMT

Forthcoming: some samples of the Australian Outback when I return from a trip to West Australia. The Kimberley region of WA is comparable in size to Great Britain and is one of the least populated areas on earth. With only one paved highway running east to west, and two seasons (the Wet and the Dry) it has some of the most remarkable geologic formations known, as well as some of the earth's oldest rock. This northwest corner of Australia, which makes up one of the most expansive police districts anywhere, is the setting for the Constable Leonard Smith stories. Visit again in the near future for photos and film clips.