NICE CATCH by Rob Lopresti One of the occupational hazards of my job is running into interesting reference books. This week I discovered The Oxford Dictionary of Catchphrases, edited by Anna Farkas. It’s a fun read, although with any book of its type part of the fun is complaining. On what planet is By golly, […]

NO PLACE FOR AMATEURS by Rob Lopresti I opened the latest Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and the lead story was by Clark Howard. The editorial note reported that he has been “a professional writer for more than forty years.” Well, yes. I thought. Very professional he is. But that’s not what you meant. And that […]

BUT I’VE TOLD YOU THIS BEFORE by Rob Lopresti Some time ago I wrote in this very spot about trying to write a follow-up to one of my published short stories. Actually, I said I was trying to write “a sort of companion or sequel.” That was my way of saying that these two tales […]

THE SNAKE, THE CROCODILE, AND THE READER by Rob Lopresti I believe I may truthfully claim that I have never been daunted by danger or drudgery. That’s the first sentence of a novel, and not a great first sentence in my opinion (although I like the lilting alliteration). But it leads into a remarkable opening […]

GOING VIRAL by Rob Lopresti I am afraid I am not my usual charming self today. More in a mood to cuss and kick the furniture. I was almost not able to provide a column this week. It looked for a while like James might have had to fill the space with a Mannix rerun […]

TITLE FIGHT by Rob Lopresti Simple question: What makes a great mystery title? It ought to catch the eye, intrigue the mind. It should also have some telling connection to the plot of the story. Some authors seem to have an endless supply of great titles. Some of my favorite authors never come up with […]

EVIL GENIUS? by Rob Lopresti I just read a review of a biography of Patricia Highsmith, the much-praised author of Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley, and other crime novels. Apparently, Joan Schenkar’s The Talented Miss Highsmith reports that she was not a very nice person. According to the review Highsmith was a […]