Creativity Booster Session with Cathy Pickens (Author website)
Monday, May 1, 2023: 7pm EST via ZOOM
Creativity is not a mysterious muse-bestowed gift but a discipline that can be developed. Writers already know they are creative. This session will introduce techniques for developing and predictably tapping into that creativity. To develop each individual’s creative process, we’ll explore:
-Creativity myths and misunderstandings,
-Discoveries in brain science,
-The importance of both play and mastery,
-The secret of the notebook, and
-Techniques for capturing and refining our ideas and our writing.
Cathy Pickens, a lawyer and college professor, is a crime fiction writer. Her first novel, Southern Fried, won the St. Martin’s/Minotaur Best New Traditional Mystery award. Her Southern Fried Mysteries are now available from Joffe Books, with new names and new covers. She is professor emerita in the McColl School of Business and served as national president of Sisters in Crime and on the boards of Mystery Writers of America and the Mecklenburg Forensic Medicine Program (an evidence collection/preservation training collaborative). She is also the author of CREATE! (ICSC Press), offers coaching and workshops on developing the creative process and works with writers on telling their stories. Her other books from The History Press include:
Charlotte True Crime Stories
True Crime Stories of Eastern North Carolina
Triangle True Crime Stories
True Crime Stories of Upstate South Carolina
True Crime Stories of Western North Carolina
Charleston Mysteries
QCS Author Summer Social
Sunday, July 23, 2023: 3pm – 7pm EST in-person
Brewers at 4001 Yancey, 4001 Yancey Rd., Charlotte, NC
Join us in-person for a summer social to celebrate books and meet authors of the Queen City Suspects Charlotte chapter of Sisters in Crime.
Upcoming Conventions
Killer Nashville 2023 – Franklin, TN, Aug. 17-20, 2023
Killer Nashville is the premier forum for all genres incorporating mystery, thriller, or suspense elements; learn, present, meet agents & editors, sign books, mingle with forensic experts, and network.
Link to more information.
Bouchercon 2023 – San Diego, CA, Aug. 30 – Sept. 3, 2023
“Murder at the Marina” : The Anthony Boucher Memorial World Mystery Convention, is an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction. It is named in honor of writer, reviewer, and editor Anthony Boucher,
Link to Convention Information
Past Events
A free and live software demonstration on Plottr.com by Troy Lambert. Plottr is a virtual software that helps writers organize and outline their projects. Plottr can help keep track of timelines, outlines, notes, characters, places for your project. Check out the software at the link, www.plottr.com and the recorded presentation from Nov. 7, 2022.
Sisters in Crime chapter events. Join other chapter events! Visit the Sisters in Crime event calendar for details.
QueenCitySuspects 