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Karen Olson's Blog

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Oct.06.2010
If it had just shown up on the blogs, he might have been able to diffuse it. But the YouTube video meant he could kiss his career goodbye. He couldn’t figure it out, though. He was sure he’d locked it up tighter than a fucking drum. There had been no proof. But as he clicked to “Watch Again” over...
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Jan.24.2010
Any time an established series author begins a new series with a new protagonist, there are bound to be comparisons between characters. I'm guilty of that myself. I absolutely loved JA Jance's JP Beaumont, and when I first read her Joanna Brady books, I admit I didn't love them. Joanna didn't have...
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Jul.01.2009
The Missing Ink
When my editor told me that she wanted me to write a new series, I had a panic attack. I’d never thought about writing another series. I thought I’d grow old with Annie Seymour like Sara Paretsky has with VI Warshawski, like Sue Grafton with Kinsey Milhone, like Marcia Muller with Sharon McCone....
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Nov.18.2008
Shot Girl
My fourth Annie Seymour mystery, SHOT GIRL, came out on Election Day. So far, reviews and comments from readers have been good. All are saying it's the best in the series. It was the hardest one to write. I decided to do something different with SHOT GIRL. With each book, I embrace a different...
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Jun.11.2008
It's been a long time since I've blogged here, mainly because I've been writing a book that's due September 1. I signed a new, two-book deal with NAL/Obsidian for a new mystery series. By writing this new series, I'm violating that tried and true rule of Write What You Know. The new series features...
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Feb.02.2008
There have been ongoing discussions on some listservs about men writing female characters and women writing male characters. It intrigues me because in my Work In Progress, one of the main characters is a man and I’ve been trying to get into his head.  Writing from the point of view of the...
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Jan.17.2008
As a fiction writer, I have permission to make stuff up.  This was quite the departure for me after 20 years in journalism, where making stuff up is a major no-no.  Just ask Jayson Blair or Stephen Glass or Janet Dailey. Although, of course, in the weird way that America works, being a journalist...
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Jan.12.2008
When my new book, DEAD OF THE DAY, came out, I was interviewed by Joe Meyers, the book editor at the Connecticut Post. He commented that this book was much more "thriller-like" than my previous two more traditional mysteries and asked if I meant to write it that way.  I did. I never want...
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Jan.11.2008
I’ve been skipping around the blogosphere and seen a lot of resolution-type posts for the start of 2008. I don’t make resolutions. Resolutions are only made to be broken, and who wants that on his conscience? Makes you feel like a loser. And God knows, being writers, we already feel insecure. I’...
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