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As I continue to work on the story of the Butts triple homicides in East Texas, I completed the chapter on the probable cause hearing for the suspect, Kevin Hailey.
The challenge is to get the pertinent information out without it reading like the transcript word for word. Since I was present in...
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I groused a few weeks back about not being able to retrieve some files from an old computer because it has neither Internet software on it nor a USB port. Yes, I could take it to a "shop" and pay to have it done, but I am cheap!
Anyway, I've been forced to re-type manuscript pages...
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I have learned a lot in preparing the proposal for my true crime book. I never was really a big reader of true crime, although I had read some like Joseph Wambaugh and an Ann Rule or two.
By the way, Ann Rule rules true crime. She's had 28 books published and another one coming out in November....
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I spent most of Saturday sending out electronic queries to potential agents. I probably send about a dozen. Of course there are agencies I have researched, know are reputable and know they handle the kind of book I am writing.
What a great surprise when I opened my e-mail Sunday morning and...
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The murder case I am writing about will definitely not be tried in the county where it occurred, Cass. No alternate site has been announced, but by the time the court date rolls around in February, a new location for the trial will have been determined.
I have also learned that the defense made...
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Sitting through the Shropshire murder trial in Cuero last week was a stark reminder of how murder's tragedy radiates from the victim, to the victim's family, to the suspect's family, to the community.
As I continue to work on the book on the Butts murders in 1992, I am remembering how many...
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I am not sure what happened to me. For the first 11 months of 2007, I read maybe one book and that was one I got for Christmas in 2006.
But since this Christmas I've absolutely gone nuts reading. As I wrote in this space earlier, I read an Ann Rule true crime tome. Now I've added Zodiac by...
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I remember talking to a New York literary agent about the story of the Butts murders (www.webbsleuths.org) and him asking me, "What makes this story different from any other trailer trash murder?"
I was angered at first, especially at the use of the term "trailer...
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Just found out that a pre-trial hearing for Kevin Hailey - the man arrested for the triple homicide in Atlanta, Texas in 1992 - is set for late Feb. Also, his attorney has requested a change of venue.
I really need to keep pushing to get this book ready when this trial starts, so I can wrap it...
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Am rereading the novel I completed a few years ago as I convert it to the true crime story it's based on.
It's amazing when you let something sit for awhile then read it again how clearly some things jump out that need to be fixed.
It's a long process, but obviously necessary.
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I jolted wide awake last night, actually early this morning, with a potential lead paragraph for the true crime story I'm writing. I love it and hate it when that happens (depending on how long it takes to go back to sleep).
Here's what came to me:
"I shook hands with a baby killer. I...
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One of my problems, so the writing experts say, is that I don't stick to one type of writing. I write poetry, short stories, have an illustrated children's story manuscript, and of course, have the proverbial "Great American Novel" gathering dust in a box somewhere in my home...
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