On the Town: Club follows trail of female mystery writers
The La Crescenta Woman’s Club got a clue as to what it’s like to be a mystery writer on Saturday during the annual Authors Luncheon held at the group’s clubhouse.
The event was organized by chair Carol Huntwork, who was assisted by co-chair Carol Stein and Carol Benedetti. President Marianne Jennings greeted the 80 members and guests attending.
Three authors told a little about their books and how they got started. And while the stories and characters are different, the books have one thing in common — solving a murder case.
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The first author, Diane Vallere, was introduced by guest Marge Spillman, a member of the Woman’s Club of West Covina.
Vallere, a former fashion buyer turned mystery writer, said she writes fiction for women who like shoes, clues and clothes. She has four series that fall under that umbrella.
One of those is the Madison Night series, born out of the author’s love of Doris Day movies. In the 1950s and ‘60s, the singer actress made several romantic comedies with Rock Hudson but also excelled in dramatic suspense films like “The Man Who Knew Too Much,” directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
“Madison Night is a character who loves Doris Day,” Vallere said. “She’s a Mid-century, modern interior decorator and she studies Doris Day movies to get the era accurate in her designs. Each book winks at a different movie, so there is “Pillow Stalk,” “That Touch of Ink” and “With Vics You Get Eggroll.”
The next book that comes out next year is “The Decorator Who Knew Too Much.”
“The best thing about that series, honestly, is I get to watch the movie over and over again as research for the book,” she said.
Vallere is president of Sisters in Crime, a national nonprofit that advocates for the professional advancement and development of female crime writers.
Someone asked if Vallere ever met actress Day. She said “no,” but she wrote her a letter when she first started writing the series, and Day wrote back to her. That letter is framed on a wall next to her desk. She also has sent Day all the books in the series.
Author Aileen Nowatzki was introduced by Barbara Edwards, the La Crescenta club’s publicity co-chair.
Journalists ask the questions who, what, where, when, how and why. But Nowatzki usually goes one step further, she said, and asks why not? She reads lots of newspapers, listens to the international news, and a lot of her themes come from current events.
She and her husband travel to the places that she uses as backdrops for her novels, which include “A Quagmire on Orcas Island,” “Mayhem on Mallorca” and “A Shroud Over Ireland.” Her main characters, Bev and Brian Moore, make their home in Naples, but travel to solve their cases.
When Nowatzki takes a trip, she always picks up a souvenir. So, while in Naples, she had dinner at a restaurant and loved the clams so much, she brought a bunch of clam shells home to give to her volunteers at St. James the Less Parish in La Crescenta, where she was director of religious education at the time.
A listener asked if her books’ main characters, the Moores, are based on her and her husband.
“No, they are a composite of my children, husband, friends, students I’ve taught over the years, and they become their own persons,” she said. “Someone asked me once how do I develop my characters, and I said, ‘Basically, I become them, whether they are nice people or vile people.”
The third author, Tammy Kaehler, was introduced by guest Mary Cox, president of the Woman’s Club of South Pasadena.
Kaehler’s career has been in technical writing and other genres, but she never tried fiction until 13 years ago when she woke up with a scene in her head. It stuck. She took a class titled “Do You Have a Book in You?” and she started a book. Then she took another class called “You Can Finish That Book” and she finished her first manuscript — that has never seen the light of day.
She was working as a marketing writer for a company that sponsored racing, and she was drawn into that world. That experience inspired her Kate Reilly Racing Mysteries, which include “Red Flags,” “Breaking Points” and “Avoidable Contact.”
Kaehler doesn’t race cars but does a lot of research. In her house, the roles are reversed on the weekends. She’s in front of the TV, watching racing, and her husband walks through the room and says, “Are you going to sit there all day?” She attends races and took a course in racing school.
One of her favorite research experiences was signing up for a two-seater lap ride with a professional driver at the Long Beach Grand Prix. She suited up in fire suit, helmet and gloves.
“You shuffle up in the line and wonder who you’re going to get,” she said.
And what a surprise — it was Mario Andretti.
Following lunch, the authors signed books purchased by those attending.
Member Daryl Baker-Pollock prepared the meal, kicking off with her signature hors d’oeuvres — apricots stuffed with goat cheese and walnuts. Lunch consisted of green salad, chicken, scalloped potatoes and apple pie a la mode. Members of the Crescenta Valley High School Key Club served the food and washed the dishes.
Proceeds will go to scholarships, youth programs and the Desi Geestman Foundation, which provides financial and emotional support to young victims and their families at the City of Hope National Medical Center and other children’s hospitals.
Rummage sale to benefit JROTC
The Crescenta Valley High School Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program will have its annual rummage sale from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday inside the school cafeteria.
Donations can be dropped off in the cafeteria from 3 to 5 p.m. on Friday.
Proceeds benefit the Crescenta Valley Air Force JROTC, Unit CA 882, which was a national finalist this year in the Air Force JROTC Drill and Ceremony Team competition at Daytona Beach and national finalist in the Air Force JROTC College Bowl Academic Team in Washington, D.C.
The JROTC Team presents the colors at the Crescenta Valley Town Council and Glendale Unified School Board meetings as well as leads off the Montrose Christmas Parade.
Most of these events are in the evening or on the weekend, during the cadet’s personal time, so this program is an incredible commitment for these high-school teenagers. It teaches them leadership as well as aerospace science, community service and physical training. It is a well-rounded course in self-discipline.
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JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com.