12.31.09
This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Writing Resolutions

It seems a lazy move to write at the end of the year about New Year's resolutions. I usually don't make them. I always figured if I cared enough about something I'd address that thing during the year itself.

But now it's the end of a decade, which seems more momentous. And it's the end of a year that wasn't so pretty for many - not so pretty financially, not so pretty culturally, certainly not so pretty for the publishing world. So my fingers are itching to lay down a few mandates for myself and my writing for the new year, the new decade.

Number 1 - drop the fear. I used to believe (and still sort of do, I'm working on it) that personal fear is a personal motivator. If I didn't fear the ability to hit a deadline, I figured, then I wouldn't make it. If I didn't fear poor quality of writing, then I wouldn't be able to produce good writing. But lately, I've wondered if that fear, that panic, really helps, or is it a crutch or a curse? I touched on this a few months ago on this blog. I haven't come to any additional conclusions since then. So my Number 1 resolution is, at least to make a good faith effort, to drop the fear.

Number 2 - write six pages a day, five days a week. This is minutiae, certainly. Sort of like a goal to brush your teeth four times a day. But a goal like that helps create discipline, and if there's one thing I've learned from the law it's that discipline is about the only thing that gets the work done. And because I'm trying to kick fear to the curb, I need those type of goals. So six pages a day, five days a week it is.

Number 3 - use Jott more often. If you haven't discovered Jott.com, I heartily encourage it, especially if you're a writer. It combines voice recognition software with actual humans, so that you dial a number from your cellphone, speak into it, and minutes later you find your words typed out and in your email box. Sure, the punctuation is often skewed, the spelling at times hilariously wrong, but as a former litigator who used to dictate all my written work, this system works well for me. (Despite my enthusiastic overtures, Jott.com has passed on my offer to be a spokesperson.

Number 4 - love it. For a while, my deadlines in the writing biz were so intense (at least for me) that some of the pleasure began to seep away. Lately, I've had time to breathe. Lately, I've been reading books just because I want to, and I've been finding myself wildly inspired by the absolute gifts of other writers. All of this makes me love my job. Let's correct that. The word 'job' and 'work' don't fit so well with what I do. That's why I promise to use those words less often. And to love it all the more.

12.22.09
The books I just recommended on WGN as last minute Christmas gifts: A Quiet Belief in Angels (so much more than your average mystery... by RJ Ellory), Awaiting Your Reply (it's about identity theft and most importantly, identity in general... by Dan Chaon) and Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanisi (two stories about one journalist, first during a trip to Venice and then a trip to India...by Geoff Dyer).

12.17.09
This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Saying goodbye to the book....

Jason Pinter, a good writer friend, tweeted last week that he was "tinkering" with a manuscript. I tweeted back, "God is in the tinkering." I meant it when I wrote it, but it wasn't until today, when I'm supposed to submit my first (completely rewritten) non-fiction book to my editor, that I realized tinkering isn't just a form of polishing your manuscript, it is also, at least for me, a way of saying sayonara.

It's the writer's version of seeing a kid off to college. You're relieved the time has finally come, but it's bittersweet all the same. So instead of sending them with a case of Rammen noodles and some old sheets, you shop the Container Store for the best shower caddies and Bed, Bath & Beyond for matching linens. Writing wise, I have been putting in a comma here, deleting a phrase there (then adding it back in, then deleting it).

Finishing this book is even more bittersweet than turning in my novels, because it's about my now-friend, former-client, Jovan Mosley, who was in a holding cell in Cook County for six years awaiting a trial for murder. Since representing Jovan in 2005, I've been living with this book--writing parts of it in my head, scribbling notes on napkins, reading thousands of pages of transcripts, reliving the trial with my other friend, Cathy O'Daniel, the lawyer who really did the heavy lifting on Jovan's case. But now the story has been amassed and the details nailed down. Like the kid off to college, it's time to say to the book, I'll be here if you need me, but meanwhile, you're on your own.

 

12.7.09

This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Vilification Doesn't Work in Fiction or in Life

I’m not a big fan of vilification, whether it's in fiction or in life. But more and more, I seem to be the only one who doesn't have the stomach for it. Public figures these days are either on pedestals or, once they have committed some transgression (at least in the mind of the media), they are smacked to the figurative ground, then beaten silly by gossip and strident tongue-lashing from news “experts.”

I find the whole vilification process not only distasteful, but false. We crime writers have been taught that a villain in a novel who is a 100% evil is, generally, just not interesting, in part because the character won’t strike the reader as true. I want to write people--characters--whether they're considered good, bad or in-the-middle, who have complex reasons for their actions, who are motivated by one thing at one time, and then maybe something else entirely a few days down the line, just like the rest of us. Because really, the villains, "the bad guys,” are just like everyone else—maybe they're just nastier, maybe they just care a little less about their consequences.

I recently finished Dan Chaon’s novel, Await Your Reply. Sakey and I met Dan a few months ago when 57th Street Books organized an author support group of sorts (of course at a pub) following one of Dan’s local signings. I bought the book shortly after, didn’t have a chance to read it until a recent trip, and am now am terribly disappointed that I’ve finished it. Because Choan masterfully works with the concept of good and evil, making the reader guess—or maybe just decide on their own—who the real villain is in the story, or whether there is one at all.

 

11.16.09

I've been getting a lot of flack lately about how I'm too attached to football, in particular to Iowa football and the Bears. Maybe I should explain—football is simply in my blood. My father played on the 1st football team for Marian Central Catholic High School in Woodstock where I grew up. When I was in high school, our team not only won the 2A class football championship, but Woodstock High School, the other school in our tiny town, won the 4A class. So this small, little burg near the Wisconsin border captured 2 out of 6 championships in the entire state of Illinois.

I went on to attend college at University of Iowa. During my first year, Iowa was ranked number 1 under Coach Hayden Fry. On a chilly fall night, we played Number 2 ranked Michigan coached by Bo Schembechler. With two seconds left, Rob Houghtlin kicked a field goal to win the game. I rushed onto the field with the rest of the crowd, the band blaring ìIn Heaven There Is No Beer." You can watch a great clip of the kick and the pandemonium after: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQqfrbuAgvY. Later, I was a cheer leader at Iowa, kneeling on the turf and screaming myself hoarse during games, jetting with the team to bowl games. So is it true that football is a silly diversion from life and that one shouldnít get too attached? Probably. But aside from being in my blood, it's just damn fun. Period. Even when you lose. And the fact is, I like fun.

You know what else is fun? Girls getting together and having a book signing. That's what I'll be doing tomorrow night with Libby Hellman and Theresa Schwegel at the Book Stall in Winnetka (811 Elm St, Winnetka, IL, 847.446.8880). We'll be chatting, reading and signing books starting at 7:00 PM. It's open to the public and we'd love to see all of you there. If you canít make it or need signed books for holiday gifts, call the store, tell them how you want the books personalized and theyíll have us sign. You can then pick up the books or have them sent to you. Afterwards, we'll be grabbing a drink at Seulís Tavern (1735 Orchard Ln , Winnetka). For those of you who read the Izzy books, you know that my love for dive bars has split over into Izzyís personality. Iím looking forward to checking this place out. Hope you can join us.

10.26.09

October was my month for travel. First, I went to Napa with girlfriends and bled the countryside of wine. Next, I went to the Wisconsin Literary Festival in Madison (Great town, great people, great popcorn). Then it was on to Indy for Bouchercon, the world's largest mystery convention, where I cavorted with authors, readers, agents, publishers and the like. Finally, I find myself in Vegas recovering from a birthday weekend. From here, it's on to Denver for a visit with my friend Amy and to see a Rob Thomas show.

After all that, I return to Chicago with nothing planned except a few last IZZY book signings. The first is this Thursday night at the amazing Evanston boutique called Chalk. Hope to see you all there, and if not, I'll be at the Book Stall on November 17th (Event begins 7 p.m. at 811 Elm Street, Winnetka, IL 60093 (847) 446.8880) with the fabulous authors Theresa Schwegel and Libby Hellman.

Finally, for those of you following the Life After Innocence Project at Loyola, there is a great article about the love story between on our client, Dean Cage and his fiance, Jewel Mitchell, on CNN.com. The Life After Innocence new web site is due to go live in the coming weeks, and in the meantime, you can follow us on our blog (blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence/) or on Twitter (@afterinnocence) and you can catch me there too (@LauraACaldwell).

10.8.09

Well, its official - I'm writing four more Izzy books. I am into number four now. I don't have a title yet and can't decide if I should continue to use the "Red" titles. If you have any thoughts, please let me know.

In the meantime, I have a few last book events for the Izzy books this month. If you happen to be in any of these areas, I'd love to see you. This weekend I will be in Milwaukee on Thursday and Madison, WI on Saturday. Next week I will be in Indianapolis for Bouchercon, the annual mystery conference. Finally, on October 29th, I'll be in Evanston, Illinois at the amazing boutique Chalk. Please come out for a glass of champagne, some shopping, the books or just to visit. The dates and information for all these events are on my news page.

I really appreciate all the comments on the Izzy books (or the others). Keep 'em coming - anything good, bad or in-between is welcome. Write to info@lauracaldwell.com.

Take care and thanks for reading!

8.27.09

I don't know why I didn't write a series before–a continuing character with a posse of interesting people around her. It was my friend, Sarah Mlynowski, an author friend, who sat me down one day in a Manhattan diner and asked me why I wasn't writing about someone who was a lawyer and why all my redhead characters were always slutty or evil and why I wasn't using Chicago even more than I had before. I opened my mouth, had nothing to say in response, and the Izzy McNeil books began to be hatched that day.

And I have news today–there will be more Izzy books! Specifically, my excellent editor, Valerie Gray, through my excellent publisher, MIRA, have asked me to write four more and my answer was a quick, loud, YES! I admit I did pause for a second and ask my excellent agent, Amy Moore-Benson, if the deadlines were going to look the same as they did with the Izzy trilogy (editing 1 of them and writing 2 of them in one year, while I also had to finish a non-fiction book). When she told me I'd get more time than that (at least a little), I was in. (We'll be making an announcement in September about exactly when the fourth Izzy McNeil book will be out.)

I've been saying it all summer, but now it's more true than ever–if you've read the Izzy books and have any thoughts on where she should go from here, the characters you'd like to see return, those you'd rather see disappear into the Chicago night or any interesting journeys Izzy might make, let me know about them. If I haven't already stumbled upon what you're suggesting and I use it, I'll put the readers who contributed in the acknowledgments of the book, because really, you guys have been amazing. I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of you who've spent time with Izzy or have written me to tell me your thoughts. And I truly do want to hear more–anything! So write a comment, visit me at lauracaldwell.com or write me at info@lauracaldwell.com and don't hold back.

PS - Those of you who've read the books know that Izzy has been long trying to weed curse words from her vocabulary, replacing things like God damn it with God bless you, Fu#$ you with Flub you, and Son of a bitch with Son-of-a-motherless-goat. I got Izzy started on this campaign after my college friend Amy kept saying, "Mother hen in a basket!" instead of what she wanted to say when she was angry. (You can figure it out). So anyway, do you have any replacement swear words you'd be willing to share and let Izzy use? Let me know about that, too. Thanks!

8.4.09

I went on WGN Radio yesterday and had such a fun interview with Steve Cochran. I'll try to get a tape of the show and put it up here.

Today I've got an event at the law firm of Jenner & Block with the Women's Bar Association of Illinois (a group I adore). Thursday, I'll be signing all three books of the trilogy at the Tree House Café in Michigan City, Indiana. It's a fun place, and you can bring your kids and yet still get a glass of wine. Perfect!

A few upcoming events: August 19 at the Thaddeus C Fine Art Gallery (LaPorte, Indiana), Aug. 21 with Marcus Sakey at the Book Cellar (Chicago), August 25 also with Marcus Sakey at Read Between the Lynes (Woodstock, IL) and August 27 at Bloomingdales (Chicago/Gift with purchase). More details are on the News page of my web site. Hope to see you!

7.24.09

I’ve had a whirlwind couple of weeks.

I turned in my non-fiction book (the first I’ve ever written) to Simon & Schuster. The next day, I was off to New York for ThrillerFest, where I got to see some good buddies and authors I admire including Jason Pinter, Kelli Stanley, Lee Child, David Morrell, Heather Graham, James Rollins, Steve Berry (and his amazing wife, Liz), Sandra Brown, M.J. Rose, Jon Land, Joe Finder and so many more.

After 24 hours I was back in Chicago for the American Library Association. I spoke on a panel with Debbie Macomber who astounded us with the fact that she has written 150 (!!) books. I truly enjoyed the ALA. Librarians are the best, and I got to see some of my favorites from around the Chicago area.

I’m taking a break now (I swear!), while I get ready for the release of the third book in my Izzy McNeil series. Red, White & Dead will hit the shelves on August 1st. It will also be available on Kindle and on audio the same day (through iTunes or Audible.com). I'll be signing books at the Tree House Cafe in Michigan City, Indiana on August 6th. On August 21st, Chicago’s the Book Cellar, on Lincoln Avenue, will be hosting Marcus Sakey and me for an author cocktail party, and books will be available there as well.

A couple other signings are soon to be added. Please check back to the ‘news’ section on my web page for updates. Thanks!

7.14.09
Red Blooded Murder, the second in the Izzy McNeil trilogy, is out! I can't say thanks enough to everyone who has written me about it because I'm hungry for reader responses. (I realize this is OCD, but I'm actually keeping a chart of reader thoughts on different characters, settings, future plots for Izzy, etc.). So keep 'em coming please! Send to info@lauracaldwell.com.

The book is available on audio too (iTunes or Audible.com), as well as Kindle (with expanded edition, including deleted scenes, interviews and essays). The last book in the trilogy, Red White & Dead, will be released August 1. You can pre-order it now from any bookseller or Amazon.

I'll be signing with author Henry Perez this Wednesday at the Webster Barnes & Noble and with Theresa Schwegel and Megan Abbott at Mystery Book Store in L.A. on Saturday afternoon. There's more information on the News page at http://www.lauracaldwell.com Come on out and say hi if you're around.

I'm also heading this week to the Drury Lane Theatre in Oak Brook to see my assistant, Liza Jaine, in Pump Boys & Dinettes. She's gotten fantastic reviews. http://www.drurylaneoakbrook.com

6.19.09
Red Hot Lies is now available on audio (iTunes and Audible.com)!

To me, having an audio book feels like I've really arrived. My mom is a certifiable audio junkie and has had me listening to "Books on Tape" since the 80's. She gets miffed the books she gets are cut or edited. When she heard Red Hot Lies was coming out on audio, she was relieved it would be unabridged.

I was there for part of the recording of the book at the fabulous Audible.com. I flew to New York, took a train to New Jersey, and lost my wallet while on the train (a rather traumatic event when you're out of town). But I still thought the recording of my audio book was one of the coolest things I had ever seen or heard.

Audible had called me about the casting of Izzy McNeil. I told them that although she was a Chicagoan, she shouldn't have a nasal "Chicago" accent. This was an exuberant young woman, possibly naïve (although she doesn't see herself like that), but she is also smart and cultured and just plain fun. When I got to Audible and heard the production, I was blown away. Nancy Lim is an actor, narrator and an amazing reader all at once. She brings every single character in the Red Hot Lies to life.

I listen to it when I take jogs around the city now, and it's such a treat. Nancy has made the book new for me again. I was lucky enough to interview her about her process, and discuss my own. If you buy the book on Audible.com, you'll get that interview on the expanded material. Otherwise, the book is also available in your iTunes music store. Soon, the other two books in the trilogy--Red Blooded Murder and Red, White & Dead--will be too. Please check them out and let me know what you think.

6.04.09
The book launch last night at Lizzie McNeill's (chosen, in part, because my character's name is Izzy McNeil, was an absolute blast. Hello Dave, one of my most favorite bands in the world, played. http://www.hellodave.com Thanks guys! You rocked, and it was an honor. I wrote about the party on The Outfit blog, so if you'd like to read more, you can do so here: http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com

I'll be on Rick Kogan's The Sunday Papers show this Sunday at 8 a.m. (listen at 720 a.m. in Chicago or wgnradio.com) and at Printer's Row Lit Fest in the Harold Washington Library at 3:00 that afternoon. Stop out and say hello.

5.27.09
Had a dinner party for my Life After Innocence law students last night to kick off our summer semester. (My version of a dinner party, of course, is buying already cooked (delicious) turkey breasts at Treasure Island). Life After Innocence will be updating our blog soon and sending out a quarterly newsletter to those of you who have signed up. If you would like to receive the newsletter, please send an email to afterinnocenceproject@gmail.com.

Tomorrow is a big book giveaway for the start of my trilogy, Red Hot Lies. I'll be on WGN Radio with Steve Cochran and then my street team will be giving out a hundred free, signed copies on Michigan Avenue in front of the studio between 4:45 and 5:15. (By the way 'street team' is code for 'law students who were cajoled into the job before they knew what their grades were.') Come and hang out with us if you're in the area.

Red Hot Lies is available at Amazon now and everywhere else in the next few days, for certain by Monday, June 1. Check it out and let me know what you think. This is going to be interesting with another book (Red Blooded Murder) coming out in July and the final in the series (Red, White & Dead) hitting the shelves in August. You can link to Amazon, read the first chapters of the books, see the early reviews and more here http://www.lauracaldwell.com/books.html

If you'll be at Book Expo this weekend, I'll be signing Red Hot Lies at the Harlequin Booth at 10:00 on Saturday and at Mystery Writer's of America at 3:00.

Next week - June 3 book party at Lizzie McNeills (www.lizziemcneills.com). Come one, come all. Music by Hello Dave.

5.21.09
I'm blogging twice a month now for The Outfit, a group of cool Chicago mystery/thriller authors—Sara Paretsky, Libby Hellman, Sean Chercover, Marcus Sakey, Michael Allen Dymoch, David Ellis, Kevin Guilfoile, & David Heinzmann. www.theoutfitcollective.com. Check it out if you get a chance, and put up a comment letting us know what you think.

5.15.09
Had a great interview this week with Kim Alexander of Fiction Nation on Sirius XM Book Radio. We chatted about my new trilogy, and the fact that Red Hot Lies comes out in only a few weeks. (Wow.) You can pre-order all three books at any local booksellers or on Amazon. They even have an option for purchasing the whole trilogy, if you click here: www.amazon.com. (If someone can tell me how to hyperlink to web sites like that from Word Pad, I will give you my first born AND an advanced signed copy of Red Hot Lies).

I'll post the Sirius interview as soon it's aired. In the meantime, you can check out Kim Alexander's book reviews and interesting author interviews at fictionnationonline.com. (And check out the art work - Kim swears that's a drawing of her on the web site (done by her artist mother), but I kinda think it looks like me. Except I'd swap out that martini for a glass of Chardonnay and the cat for a bowl of popcorn).

I also had an interview with Loyola Magazine, and the interviewer ended up being one of my former law students, Brendan Keating. Next up, a chat with Rebecca from Book Page.

5.8.09
Mark your calendars: Book launch and signing for Red Hot Lies at Lizzie McDave. Open to public, so bring friends! www.lizziemcneills.com, (We just had to have it there since my character's name is Izzy McNeil), Wednesday June 3, 6:00, Music by Hello.

5.2.09
Manhattan was a blast. The Edgar Awards ran like a tight ship, thanks to Margery Flax, Laura Durham and the efficient and charming Lee Child.

The people at Audible.com are an amazing bunch. What a great, creative hub they've got going out there.Beth Anderson was kind enough to take me around and show me the ropes, and I got to watch actor Nancy Wu (who looks nothing like Izzy McNeil and yet SOUNDS just like her) narrate Red Hot Lies under the guidance of ace producer Mike Charzuk and cool sound engineer Nic Cameron.

The Life After Innocence Project at Loyola got a nice mention in the National Law Journal last week: law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNLJ.jsp?id=1202430318881&slreturn=1.

4.30.09
I'm getting ready to leave for NY for the Edgar Awards and to watch Red Hot Lies be recorded for audio by Audible.com. The audio version will be available on ITunes the same day the book is released – June 1 – but you can pre-order all three books of the trilogy now at Amazon, B&N, Borders or any local book seller.

The reviews on Red Hot Lies keep coming in, and I've been very lucky. Here's the latest from the Romantic Times: “4.5 out of 5 stars. Told mainly from the heroine's first-person point of view, this beautifully crafted and tightly written story is a fabulous read. It's very difficult to put down–and the ending is terrific.”

The semester has ended at Loyola Law School and I had to say goodbye to my Advanced Litigation Writing class, a great bunch of students who will make exceptional lawyers. My Life After Innocence project (where we offer guidance to people who were imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit) will continue to meet in the summer, because we've just got too much work to do–getting the records clear of Jerry Miller and Dean Cage (so the world no longer sees them as felons when their convictions were overturned), getting Jovan Mosley through college so he can be a lawyer, writing an amicus brief on the constitutionality of the Certificate of Innocence (which gives wrongfully convicted persons some funding from the state). If you'd like to receive our quarterly email of our project, what we're working on and support we're looking for, please email egreene@luc.edu. Or check out our blog (and a recent video of me) at http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence.

4.20.09
Wow, just got some cool news. I've been lucky enough to be published in 10 languages and twenty-some countries, but this past week I found out that The Rome Affair is available in German--my first German book. (amazon.com). Now I learned that two of my titles are coming out in Malaysia. (bernama.com). Sweet! I was already thinking of going to Southeast Asia in the fall, but now I think it's a must-do.

4.15.09
Publisher's Weekly--thank you for the great review of my June book, Red Hot Lies! Here's some of it: "Former trial lawyer Caldwell launches a mystery series that weaves the emotional appeal of her chick lit titles with the blinding speed of her thrillers. Young, sassy Izzy McNeil, lead entertainment lawyer at Pickett Enterprises, has earned envy for her success (much of which she owes to the patronage of CEO Forester Pickett) and cheeky manner, but she's starting to panic about her upcoming wedding to charming Sam Hollings. Then Pickett is killed and Sam vanishes, as do $30 million worth of Panamanian real estate bonds....[R]eaders will be left looking forward to another heart-pounding ride on Izzy's silver Vespa."

You can pre-order Red Hot Lies, or the other two books in the trilogy--Red Blooded Murder and Red, White and Dead by clicking on the "Books" page of my web site (lauracaldwell.com) or by calling your local independent bookseller. (And I would love you forever if you did).

Speaking of Red Hot Lies - Save the date! Launch party here in Chicago on June 3 at Lizzie McNeils, the great Irish bar on the river. Open to the public. Lots of other dates for book events are on the News page of my site, and more to come.

I went to a lovely dinner party last night for a German film crew in town filming a documentary about the Center on Wrongful Convictions. The filming is focusing on how the law students work to exonerate people who have been imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit. A fascinating group of guests. I tried to employ a lyric from one of my favorite Bob Schneider songs: "I want to be like Jesus Christ; Keep the party moving, give the good advice."

Today, I'll be on the Steve Cochran show on WGN somewhere between 6:30 and 7 to review a few books. 720 am in Chicago or listen at wgnradio.com.

Lastly, gosh it's nice to have a publicist who likes you enough to put you on his home page: www.authorandbookmedia.com. Any authors out there should check out Tom Robinson.

4.8.09
You can pre-order my Chicago mystery trilogy now! The novels--Red Hot Lies, Red Blooded Murder and Red, White & Dead--feature a sassy redheaded lawyer from Chicago who moonlights as a private investigator after her fiancé disappears and her client is killed. Check out excerpts and the covers and pre-order by clicking on the "Books" page of my web site (lauracaldwell.com) or by calling your local independent bookseller.

We're getting lots of appearances together, which you can read about on the "News" page of my web site. There will be a book launch party at Lizzie McNeils (It had to be there since my character's name is Izzy McNeil) in the first week of June, right on the Chicago river. It will be open to the public. Date soon-to-be-announced. And Steve Cochran from WGN asked me to be in his celebrity golf outing June 29. Clearly, I am just there for the hilarity factor as my golf skills are tragic. If you're a better golfer, though, and you want to join, it's open to the public too and it's for a great cause--juvenile diabetes. He always has a pack of cool Chicago broadcast people there and the event is a blast.

Yesterday, I got together with my law students from the Life After Innocence Project, as well as two of our clients, Jerry Miller (www.colbertnation.com/video/tag/Jerry+Miller) and Dean Cage (www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOsJsPxD_ag). Both did time (Jerry 26 years and Dean 14 years) for crimes they didn't commit and from which DNA evidence exonerated them. When both men went into the penitentiary, they hadn't used computers before, didn't have email accounts. There was no Facebook yet, no Twitter (yeah, I caved and I'm on Twitter now (user name: LauraACaldwell). Anyway, yesterday the Life After Innocence Project got to give Dean his very first laptop, and we hooked him up with a GMail account. He wants to use the Internet to explore learning a trade and getting an apprenticeship. A photo of yesterday will soon be posted on our blog: http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence.

3.15.09
The city was jumping yesterday with early St. Patty's day revelers. It'll be interesting to see the place on Tuesday when the real professionals come out. On the 17th, I'll be at the Celtic Lawyers Lunch (which I lovingly refer to as the Drunken Lawyers lunch).

My oldest friend in the world, Ace Baker, was in town last night doing sound for a band called Kinky. Before I went to the Congress Theatre to meet him (by the way, the Congress has got to be the coolest theatre in Chicago), I looked up Kinky on the internet. I read something like this, "Kinky makes dance music with guitars, a North African confluence of reggae, hip hop, Arabic pop, and traditional tribal music. Kinky is electro-rock fusion, a borderless funk.î To which I replied, "Huh?" But when I saw them in person, I got it. They've got to be one of the best live bands performing today. Highly recommended. Iíll be on the Erik and Kathy show on Thursday with Anna Davlantes. You can listen at wtmx.com or 101.9 f.m. in Chicago.

2.26.09
I just got back from New York, where I went to the Rachel Maddow show with my hysterical cousin-in-law, Kent Jones, who wraps up Rachel's show every day. Here's Kent from last week talking about someone else's cousin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w19-z1hZcl4

2.17.09
I'm in Maine with author Elizabeth Flock. We're writing lots and talking about writing even more. Liz is getting ready for her new book, "Sleepwalking in Daylight" to hit the shelves on February 24. (elizabethflock.com) You probably remember Liz from her NYT bestseller, "Me & Emma". I had the pleasure of interviewing Liz for Shore Magazine's April, 2009 issue. Check it out if you get the chance. On Friday, I'll be heading to the Auto Show and will be on WGN radio with Steve Cochran in the 4:00 hour with Anna Davlantes. (720 AM if you're in Chicago or listen at www.wgnradio.com)

2.12.09
At midnight this past Saturday, I found myself dancing in a ballroom to Brown Eyed Girl with my agent, Amy. Dancing with us was a Roman soldier, a civil war army general, a woman dressed as Anne Boleyn and a World War II officer. No, I wasn't dreaming. (I believe dreams should only be recounted to your spouse or your therapist). I was actually at “Love is Murder”, a mystery writers' conference here in Chicago, held at a Westin hotel. On the other side of the hotel, another conference was taking place—a reenactors festival, where people gather from around the nation to dress as their favorite historical characters, ones they like to re-enact on a regular basis (reenactorfest.com). They had been kind enough to invite my agent and me into their ball to see what it was all about.

My initial thought was that this reenactor stuff was slightly crazy, but when the song was over General Ulysses S. Grant and I got talking, and he explained to me reenactors do the same thing that fiction writers do. He asked me, for example, why I like being a novelist. I responded that I love to walk into other people's worlds. He said it was the same for him. He was a history buff. He had done scores of research on Ulysses S. Grant and became fascinated with what it would have been like to be him. Instead of writing a novel about it, he decided to be the General, to find out what it would be like to dress like him, to act like him. At that point, a woman in a can-can outfit walked by and, hearing our conversation, asked if I wanted to try on part of her costume, just to see what it was like. When I said yes, she promptly dropped her multi-layered flouncy red skirt (she had a full sassy costume on underneath) and put it on me. Before I knew it I was kicking up a storm with a big grin on my face. Ben LeRoy from Bleakhouse Books was there, and I can only hope and pray the video camera he was holding ended up breaking.

I'm featured this month in Today's Chicago Woman, if you want to check it out, go to www.tcwmag.com. On February 19, the March issue of Chicago Magazine will be released and will feature an article by me on Anna Devlantes' new show, Rewind, on Channel 11. The show is fabulous, as is Anna (who can also be seen on NBC5 news), and she and I will be on Steve Cochran's show on WGN on Thursday, February 19, in the 4:00 hour to talk about it. You can listen at wgnradio.com. Finally, an article I wrote about some of my favorite Chicago books is in Michigan Avenue Magazine this month. If you're in the city, pick one up at your local bookstore or newstand.

1.23.09
I'm thrilled to be starting the Life After Innocence Project at Loyola University Chicago Law School. The Life After Innocence Project is a new practicum where my law students will have the opportunity to offer guidance and legal assistance to clients who have been exonerated after serving time in a county jail or those who have spent time in a penitentiary before having their convictions overturned. Our first two clients are Jerry Miller and Dean Cage, who served 26 years and 12 years respectively in prison for crimes they didn't commit before Barry Scheck's Innocence Project in New York helped to exonerate them. Check out Jerry on the Colbert Report, showing his incredible mix of humor and grace: www.colbertnation.com. To read more about the Life After Innocence Project, visit our new blog at http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence. Or if you're in Chicago, we'd love to see you at our launch event on Wednesday, January 28 at 5:00 p.m. at Loyola (25 East Pearson, Kasbeer Hall, Chicago, Illinois).

1.2.09
Happy New Year! The holidays have been great; hope for you, too. I was in Phoenix for Christmas, hanging with my sisters and dad, and it was a blast. I went on the WGN morning show on Christmas Eve to recommend some books for last minute gifts. For those of you who have written asking for those again, here they are.
- For the mystery lover: Trigger City by Sean Chercover;
- For young kids: To Market, To Market by Anne Miranda & Janet Stevens;
- For the dog lover: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein;
- For the Harry Potter fan: The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling;
- And for the book by the big name you can't go wrong with: the Gate House by Nelson DeMille.

Today, my assistant, Liza Jaine, and I took the day off and spent the afternoon at Spacio on Halsted. The spa was showcasing work by Chicago artist, Matthew Lew, and I couldn't help but think about how I'd met Matt. About a year or so ago, I went to Spacio by myself and was struck by the artwork on the walls. I noticed the artist's name--Matthew Lew--and went home and stalked his website (www.matthewlew.com), wishing I could buy fifteen of his paintings. The next night, I met some friends for a drink and soon we were talking to the lovely man at the next table. We all finally got around to introducing ourselves and the lovely man said his name was Matthew Lew. Yes, he said when I finally stammered out my question, he was the same Matthew Lew who showcased some of his art at Spacio. Matt and I became friends that night, and a month later I owned four of his paintings, painted just for my house. Meanwhile, I've watched as Matt's career has skyrocketed. (He's now designing for CB2). Check out his great stuff if you get the chance.

12.16.08
Last night, I turned in the third book of my mystery series for next summer--Red, White & Dead. In the book, I revisit two of my favorite settings--Chicago and Rome. It was a blast to write.

I'm taking the day off for a photo shoot for Today's Chicago Woman for their "Hottest Singles in Chicago" issue. Please stop laughing. And please don't email me to remind me
that most of the appropriate people must have had the flu.
I get it.

Last weekend, I had an amazing time at a holiday book club luncheon in Wacounda, Illinois with about fifty wonderful women. One of them, my new friend Melissa, sat at my table and later posted some details on her blog, along with photos of the cool ornaments that the hostess extraordinaire, Terri Suda, gave as gifts. Click here to visit her blogspot.

12.8.08
I just spent a great week in Portland visiting family. Ate at some great restaurants, too--Saucebox with my brother, Southpark with author Phillip Margolin, and Thai Mango more than once with my mom.

I'm closing in on the first draft of my third novel in my Red mystery trilogy due out next summer. We changed some of the titles around. The first one is still Red Hot Lies. The second one now Red Blooded Murder and the third Red, White & Dead. What do you think?

11.19.08
Thanks for all the calls and emails after my mugging last week. I am doing very well. I was a little disappointed after the incident happened because I had this idea that as a thriller writer, it might translate into real life and I might to be able to kick some ass. Um, no. But I do cower well. And on the upside, I've learned that I'm a fast healer, which is good to know. I've gone away for the week to recuperate some more. I wanted to pass along some street safety tips that Officer McGrath of the Chicago Police Department shared with me when he called me yesterday:

1. Be aware, not just of who is around you but exactly where you are. Even if it's a route you walk normally, every few blocks or so check in with yourself and say, "Okay, now I'm in the 2700 block of Racine," maybe even notice an address or two along the way. This apparently helps increase your overall awareness and then if, God forbid, something happened you could easily identify your location to the authorities.
2. Carry your cell phone on you, even if you are running, again so you can contact the authorities if need be. (Although in my case, they probably would have taken it along with my IPod).
3. According to Officer McGrath not just Spider Man has super senses, we all have them. So when your "Spidey sense" is telling you "get the hec out of here" - do it. (He used a word stronger than 'hec', but I'll let you fill in your own).
4. He wasn't sure that there were statistics to support this but it was Officer McGrath's observation as a police officer that incidents rise sharply on the night of a full moon, which was when my robbery occurred. So if you believe in that kind of thing, be extra careful on those nights.

11.15.08
You might see some media reports about me being mugged while out for a run in my Chicago neighborhood. Yep, kind of got my butt kicked. Lost some teeth, but got some new ones. The swelling is way down, the ego is still a little bruised. I'll be back to writing on Monday.

10.21.08
I went to University of Iowa, and like most people who did the same, I think Iowa City is a gem. That impression was only solidified this past weekend when I headed back to Hawkeye-land for a few speaking engagements and the football game against Wisconsin. But first, when I got into town on Thursday, I went to just about one of the coolest parties I'd ever been to. About 40 or so people in a penthouse apartment atop the newish Hotel Vetro and readings by four amazing authors–Ethan Canin, Michael Cunningham, Jane Hamilton and Scott Spencer.

The game itself was on one of those seductive autumn days, and the Hawks beat the Badgers easily. I spoke to the Honors Program, an exceptional group of students and faculty who made me wish I'd been a part of it while I was there. I was also lucky enough to speak to some of David Hamilton's non-fiction writing students, as well as a few law students and by the time I left last night, I only wished I had a few more days there.

10.15.08
Boy, who knew Baltimore could be so fun? Bouchercon, the international mystery conference, rolled into town this past weekend. Great to see so many friends like David Ellis, Ken Bruen, Dana Kaye, Heather Graham, Jamie Freveletti, David Montgomery, Rick Mofina, Barry Eisler, Jason Pinter, Kelli Sanley, Michelle Gagnon, David Corbett, Philip Spitzer, Henry Perez, Joe Konrath and Lukas Ortiz. Cool to finally meet Harlan Coben (the French film based on his book, Tell No One, is supposed to be amazing). Really wish I could have met one of my favorite writers, Thomas H. Cook. Thanks to Lee Child for throwing the big bash at Lucy's Pub.

10.3.08
I was just in Niagra Falls for my publisher's sales conference. They are truly the most amazing group of people to work with.

Recently, I was interviewed on an internet radio show called Revolutionary Muse. You can listen to it at: www.blogtalkradio.com

My article about working with a personal fashion editor was on the cover of Shore magazine this month. You can read it here: visitshoremagazine.com.

An anthology I was in (Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume) got a shout out from Diablo Cody in Entertainment Weekly.

I'm headed to Iowa City soon to speak at the University of Iowa, my alma mater, and attend the Iowa/Wisconsin game. I plan to start tailgating at 7 a.m. There's nothing like a Bud Light first thing in the morning. Go Hawks!

9.17.08
I just finished editing my new novel, Red Hot Lies, thanks to some sweet work from my new editor, Valerie Gray, and my assistant, Liza Jaine. The book will be out in June 2009. It'll be followed in July 2009 and August 2009 by Red Blooded and Code Red. Yep, I finally found my third red title. Thanks to all of you who wrote in to make suggestions.

The new Michigan Avenue Magazine, put out by Niche Media, just hit newsstands today with Cindy Crawford on the cover and with articles by Michelle O'Bama, Mariel Hemingway and Bill Maher to name just a few. Look for a piece by me in the next issue due out in November or February.

8.21.08
This has been a WGN Radio kind of week for me. Rick Kogan accidentally asked me to be on his Sunday show when I saw him a few nights before at the opening of Jenniffer Weigel's show at the Viaduct Theatre (www.staytunedwithjen.com). Kogan's real guest was Marcus Sakey, my buddy and a great writer (www.marcussakey.com). His new book, Good People, is out now. Kogan is a genius interviewer who makes you feel like you're just sitting on the couch next to him (or maybe the bar stool). On Monday, I went on Steve Cochran's show with another author friend, Tasha Alexander, whose new book is A Fatal Waltz(www.tashaalexander.com). The other books I recommended were Ethan Canin's America, America and Christopher Reich's Rules of Deception.

6.29.08
I just got back from Italy, where I was teaching about the International Criminal Court at the Rome campus of Loyola University. It was my 5th visit to Rome, but it was somewhat different this time since I had an apartment and was trying to act like a local. Of course, that's hard to do when you have red hair and your Italian is wretched, but I had a blast trying.

Anyone who has been there knows that Italy is far from perfect. Lots of things often don't work–air conditioning and shower heads to name a few–and the nonchalance when you mention such things to management can be maddening. The Italians have perfected the grand shrug, that slow, exaggerated lift of the shoulders that says, "Yes, it's broken. What can I do? It is what it is." After a few such incidents, I decided that this response was a fairly Buddhist approach to life and spent much of my time there practicing the shrug and the surrender.

Of course, there's so much to love about Italy, and I found la dolce vita in a lot of little things. The packaging for one. How is it that a mini-bar chocolate somehow looks like a gift for a 15th century princepessa? And I fell in love with the word Complimenti!, which is basically a really succinct way to say, "Congratulations! Fantastic! Good job!" When the dean of my law school introduced me to the local staff on campus and mentioned that my mother, Margaret Caldwell, had been one of the first students ever at the Rome campus in the 1960s, they gasped and said, "Complimenti!" as if I had anything to do with my mother's fabulousness. Ditto for when the dean told them that I had been third generation at Loyola Law School (my grandfather, uncle and dad, William Caldwell, all having gone there). When you tell someone you're in town for a month–"Complimenti!" Show them a pair of shoes you bought (T-bone silver espradilles)–"Complimenti!" Mention just about anything worthy of the tiniest bit of praise–"Complimenti!" Ya gotta love it.

I managed to get a fair amount of writing done while I was there, mostly while enjoying the plentiful local scenery. To hear more about that, you can read my guest blog post at The Outfit, a collective blog of very cool crime writers here in Chicago, like Sara Paretsky, Libby Hellman, Marcus Sakey and Sean Chercover. theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com.

Ciao for now!

5.7.08
I was in New York last week, and the streets were abuzz with the great weather. I stayed with my good friend, author Elizabeth Flock, and got to congregate with a larger pack of amazing writers at the Edgar Awards. The Edgars are sort of like the Oscars for mystery writers–replete with the black tie gala, the cool trophies and the acceptance speeches. A former Edgar award winner, Theresa Schwagel, who I'm thrilled is living in Chicago now, gave the award for Best Paperback Original to Megan Abbott for her book, Queenpin. Tana French won Best First Novel for In the Woods. My friend, Ken Bruen, was up for Best Novel, along with John Hart, Michael Chabon, Reed Farrel Coleman and Benjamin Black, all wonderful and funny men. Congrats to John Hart, who won for his novel, Down River. At the cocktail party, I got to hang out with Michael Chabon and was fascinated to learn that as part of the Obama campaign he's been cold-calling Democratic voters to discuss the issues. This fact alone nearly made me move to New York. Can you imagine a city where a Pulitzer Prize winner (and a really cool dude) like Chabon calls you while you're unloading the dishwasher??

Yesterday, I went on the Steve Cochran show on WGN Radio. Steve called the scene in the studio an "estrogen den" because two other ladies stopped by--Patti Vasquez (www.pattivasquez.com), a whip-funny and ultra-cool comic I met last summer at Steve's annual celebrity golf outing, and Chris Blumer, a/k/a the Wine Diva (www.winedivaent.com). I'd like to officially request that Patti and Chris accompany me to every appearance I make. These girls are hysterical, and when you combine them with a pro like Steve Cochran, an hour on the radio flies by like it's mere minutes. I'll be golfing horribly at Steve's celebrity outing this summer (a performance sure to be made more ghastly by jet lag since I'll just be back from teaching in Rome).

Meanwhile, if you're interested in the books I recommended on Steve's show, they are Black & White by Dani Shapiro, Extraordinary Circumstances by Cynthia Cooper ("Journey of a Corporate Whistleblower") and Charley's Web by Joy Fielding (mystery). I also chatted about the upcoming ThrillerFest this summer in New York. For more information visit www.thrillerfest.org.

4.27.08
This summer I'll be teaching about the International Criminal Court at Loyola's international program in Rome, Italy. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a new addition to the world of international law. The ICC came into force in 2002 and at this time, 105 countries have joined the court, including Canada and nearly all of Europe and South America. The U.S., along with Russia, China, Iraq and India have not joined the court. The ICC is a permanent tribunal, sitting in the Hague, and it will prosecute individuals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in situations where the nation states involved are unable or unwilling to prosecute such crimes.

On April 25, I had the pleasure of accompanying Loyola Law Professors Alan Raphael (with whom I'll be teaching in Rome this summer) and Jerry Norton to a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the ICC. I had a chance to meet Moreno-Ocampo, who was as charming, intelligent and engaging as I had heard. For a great read about the situation in Darfur and the efforts made by Moreno-Ocampo and the ICC, click on www.nytimes.com.

The night before the conference I went to the opening party for Artopolis, Chicago's massive exhibition devoted to art, culture and antiques. Attendance at the weekend event is usually over 50,000 in one weekend. The art on the opening night was amazing--everything from Warhols to new artists--but the watching the people, a splashy, fascinating crowd from around the world, was even better. To see videos about some of the goings-on at Artropolis, go here: www.merchandisemart.com.

4.21.08
Some of my author friends and I are finalizing plans for a book signing on July 10 in Manhattan to coincide with ThrillerFest, a great event open to readers who want to meet thriller authors, like James Patterson, David Baldacci, Sandra Brown (and me). The book signing is going to be MC'd by the wonderful Lee Child. Here are the authors I'll have the pleasure to read with: Michelle Gagnon, Tim Maleeny, Alexandra Sokoloff, Mario Acevedo, JT Ellison, Laura Benedict and Shane Gericke.

Speaking of ThrillerFest, I'm going on Steve Cochran's show on WGN Radio to talk about it on Thursday, May 6, at 4:38 p.m. (Apparently, they're very precise in the radio world). You can listen at www.wgnradio.com.

4.8.08
I've been back from Denver and the Left Coast Crime convention for a month, and I can't believe I haven't written about it. Too much damned fun. Have you ever seen the movie Best in Show? It's kind of like that. But with laptops. And people who like to kill their characters. And people who like to read about it. Some of the characters I had the pleasure of hanging out with--Theresa Schwegel, Lori Armstrong, Tasha Alexander, Marcus Sakey, Michael Dymmoch, Twist Phelan, Libby Fischer Hellman, Joan Johnston, Rick Mofina, Con Lehane, Judy Bobalik, J.T. Ellison, Les Klinger, Michelle Gagnon, Doug Lyle, and Tim Maleeny.

One of the last stops on my book tour was a signing at Bloomingdale's in Chicago. This happened to be on the same day of the St. Patty's Day parade. After that, I made a silent vow to always have book signings when drunk people roam the streets, and the stores, wearing green and shamrocks. Entirely entertaining.

My last stop was at the Plainfield Library, a delightful place with a delightful group of women. Thanks much, ladies.

Next up for me--the Edgar Awards Banquet New York with my friend, Ken Bruen; Book Expo in L.A. in May; teaching in Rome in June; and back to New York in July for the fantastic and fun Thriller Fest.

2.27.08
Musicians tour together, why not authors? I hit the road recently with Marcus Sakey and found out that book signings are a hell of a lot of fun with a friend, especially someone like Marcus who takes a healthy dose of mocking and dishes it right back. Thanks to the great people at M is for Mystery in San Mateo and The Mystery Bookstore in L.A., not to mention all the authors who stopped by to heckle us along the way--Michelle Gagnon, Rip Gerber, Les Klinger, Keith Raffel, Rob Gregory Browne and Brett Battles.

And you have to love a bookstore owner who will help mix drinks and set up for the party, too. Thanks to Suzy Takas, owner of the awesome Book Cellar in Lincoln Square, for pitching in at Dustin O'Regan's soiree for The Good Liar (and to all the sassy Lake Forest ladies who turned out in Bond gear to celebrate).

1.24.08
Wow, what a blast at the Landmark last night for the book launch party! Thanks to everybody who packed the place and the the stellar crew at Landmark for making it sparkle and look so easy. Check out Landmark at www.landmarkgrill.net.

1.16.08
A few years ago, I had the great fortune to be a defense lawyer for Jovan Mosley, a Chicago man who was forced into a murder confession when he was 19 and then spent 6 years without a trial in a holding cell in the Cook County jail, essentially lost by the system. He was saved by my friend, Catherine O'Daniel, who came upon him while visiting another inmate. ABC reporter John Garcia recently did a great story on the case. You can watch the video here: abclocal.go.com.

I also went on WGN Radio last week with Steve Cochran, one of my most favorite people. You can listen to majority of the interview on Cochran's podcast: http://caster.wgnradio.com/podcasts/scpod-121-080116.mp3.

I'm looking forward to the Chicago book launch party next week, on Wednesday January 23 at the Landmark Grill, which I'm sharing with my good friend, author, Marcus Sakey. The booze is on us, and the books will be sold, so come out and visit! It's from 7 - 9 p.m.

1.9.08
I never thought anyone would bring up my brief but brilliant career as a french horn player, but journalist Teresa Budasi managed to work it into a great piece in Sunday's Chicago Sun-Times.

12.30.07
Thanks to the hundreds of you who have emailed me about my new book, THE GOOD LIAR! One of the best things about being an author is knowing that someone is reading your book. Maybe it's entertaining them, maybe it's making them think, maybe they're using it as a coaster for a New Year's Eve highball. It's all good.

Here's to a great and safe New Year!

12.18.07
The reviews are starting to come in for THE GOOD LIAR.

From Publisher's Weekly:
"Caldwell's taut, enjoyable thriller hits the ground running, crafting a married-to-the-mob scenario that's believable and chilling, then taking the show around the world... Caldwell's plot moves smoothly, juggling a number of perspectives without losing steam."

From Booklist:
"Caldwell, best known for chick lit, including The Night I Got Lucky, now ventures into thriller territory. When Liza Kingsley set up her best friend, Kate Livingston, with Michael Waller, she never imagined they'd fall in love and marry within a matter of months. Liza and Michael share a secret: they're both members of the Trust, a covert operation founded by Liza's father to protect U.S. interests. Kate happily settles into her new marriage, but she can't help but notice strange things about her husband's life. Why is she forbidden to enter the private meeting rooms at his restaurant? Why is their house bugged? Liza is chasing down a mystery of her own: Who killed her former lover, a Russian journalist who was investigating the Russian mob? Filled with romance and intrigue,this thriller will both please Caldwell's fans and attract new readers."

From Armchair Interviews:
"Laura Caldwell has climbed the literary ladder right to the top of romantic suspense/thriller writers. She is a master at characterization and the multilevel plot is filled with near unbearable tension as the danger mounts. Nothing is as it seems in this exciting novel that kept me reading most of the night. Armchair Interviews says: You will love the climax of the story that is satisfying and totally unexpected."

From The Chicago Contingent:
"Laura Caldwell got her start in Chick-Lit, inched toward Romantic Suspense, and although The Good Liar does revolve around a relationship, she has definitely crossed into the realm of espionage and international thriller. After a recent divorce, Kate Livingston didn't think she'd fall in love again so quickly. But when her friend Liza sets her up with a colleague, just to take her mind off her ex, they hit it off immediately and end up getting married. At first, the rush and spontaneity is romantic, but soon Kate realizes her husband isn't exactly who he seems, and neither is her friend. Another solid read, Caldwell kept me glued to my seat and flying through the pages, not letting up until the very end."

 

12.31.09
This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Writing Resolutions

It seems a lazy move to write at the end of the year about New Year's resolutions. I usually don't make them. I always figured if I cared enough about something I'd address that thing during the year itself.

But now it's the end of a decade, which seems more momentous. And it's the end of a year that wasn't so pretty for many - not so pretty financially, not so pretty culturally, certainly not so pretty for the publishing world. So my fingers are itching to lay down a few mandates for myself and my writing for the new year, the new decade.

Number 1 - drop the fear. I used to believe (and still sort of do, I'm working on it) that personal fear is a personal motivator. If I didn't fear the ability to hit a deadline, I figured, then I wouldn't make it. If I didn't fear poor quality of writing, then I wouldn't be able to produce good writing. But lately, I've wondered if that fear, that panic, really helps, or is it a crutch or a curse? I touched on this a few months ago on this blog. I haven't come to any additional conclusions since then. So my Number 1 resolution is, at least to make a good faith effort, to drop the fear.

Number 2 - write six pages a day, five days a week. This is minutiae, certainly. Sort of like a goal to brush your teeth four times a day. But a goal like that helps create discipline, and if there's one thing I've learned from the law it's that discipline is about the only thing that gets the work done. And because I'm trying to kick fear to the curb, I need those type of goals. So six pages a day, five days a week it is.

Number 3 - use Jott more often. If you haven't discovered Jott.com, I heartily encourage it, especially if you're a writer. It combines voice recognition software with actual humans, so that you dial a number from your cellphone, speak into it, and minutes later you find your words typed out and in your email box. Sure, the punctuation is often skewed, the spelling at times hilariously wrong, but as a former litigator who used to dictate all my written work, this system works well for me. (Despite my enthusiastic overtures, Jott.com has passed on my offer to be a spokesperson.

Number 4 - love it. For a while, my deadlines in the writing biz were so intense (at least for me) that some of the pleasure began to seep away. Lately, I've had time to breathe. Lately, I've been reading books just because I want to, and I've been finding myself wildly inspired by the absolute gifts of other writers. All of this makes me love my job. Let's correct that. The word 'job' and 'work' don't fit so well with what I do. That's why I promise to use those words less often. And to love it all the more.

12.22.09
The books I just recommended on WGN as last minute Christmas gifts: A Quiet Belief in Angels (so much more than your average mystery... by RJ Ellory), Awaiting Your Reply (it's about identity theft and most importantly, identity in general... by Dan Chaon) and Jeff in Venice, Death in Varanisi (two stories about one journalist, first during a trip to Venice and then a trip to India...by Geoff Dyer).

12.17.09
This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Saying goodbye to the book....

Jason Pinter, a good writer friend, tweeted last week that he was "tinkering" with a manuscript. I tweeted back, "God is in the tinkering." I meant it when I wrote it, but it wasn't until today, when I'm supposed to submit my first (completely rewritten) non-fiction book to my editor, that I realized tinkering isn't just a form of polishing your manuscript, it is also, at least for me, a way of saying sayonara.

It's the writer's version of seeing a kid off to college. You're relieved the time has finally come, but it's bittersweet all the same. So instead of sending them with a case of Rammen noodles and some old sheets, you shop the Container Store for the best shower caddies and Bed, Bath & Beyond for matching linens. Writing wise, I have been putting in a comma here, deleting a phrase there (then adding it back in, then deleting it).

Finishing this book is even more bittersweet than turning in my novels, because it's about my now-friend, former-client, Jovan Mosley, who was in a holding cell in Cook County for six years awaiting a trial for murder. Since representing Jovan in 2005, I've been living with this book--writing parts of it in my head, scribbling notes on napkins, reading thousands of pages of transcripts, reliving the trial with my other friend, Cathy O'Daniel, the lawyer who really did the heavy lifting on Jovan's case. But now the story has been amassed and the details nailed down. Like the kid off to college, it's time to say to the book, I'll be here if you need me, but meanwhile, you're on your own.

 

12.7.09

This post originally appeared on The Outfit:A Collection of Chicago Crime Writers (http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com):

Vilification Doesn't Work in Fiction or in Life

I’m not a big fan of vilification, whether it's in fiction or in life. But more and more, I seem to be the only one who doesn't have the stomach for it. Public figures these days are either on pedestals or, once they have committed some transgression (at least in the mind of the media), they are smacked to the figurative ground, then beaten silly by gossip and strident tongue-lashing from news “experts.”

I find the whole vilification process not only distasteful, but false. We crime writers have been taught that a villain in a novel who is a 100% evil is, generally, just not interesting, in part because the character won’t strike the reader as true. I want to write people--characters--whether they're considered good, bad or in-the-middle, who have complex reasons for their actions, who are motivated by one thing at one time, and then maybe something else entirely a few days down the line, just like the rest of us. Because really, the villains, "the bad guys,” are just like everyone else—maybe they're just nastier, maybe they just care a little less about their consequences.

I recently finished Dan Chaon’s novel, Await Your Reply. Sakey and I met Dan a few months ago when 57th Street Books organized an author support group of sorts (of course at a pub) following one of Dan’s local signings. I bought the book shortly after, didn’t have a chance to read it until a recent trip, and am now am terribly disappointed that I’ve finished it. Because Choan masterfully works with the concept of good and evil, making the reader guess—or maybe just decide on their own—who the real villain is in the story, or whether there is one at all.

 

11.16.09

I've been getting a lot of flack lately about how I'm too attached to football, in particular to Iowa football and the Bears. Maybe I should explain—football is simply in my blood. My father played on the 1st football team for Marian Central Catholic High School in Woodstock where I grew up. When I was in high school, our team not only won the 2A class football championship, but Woodstock High School, the other school in our tiny town, won the 4A class. So this small, little burg near the Wisconsin border captured 2 out of 6 championships in the entire state of Illinois.

I went on to attend college at University of Iowa. During my first year, Iowa was ranked number 1 under Coach Hayden Fry. On a chilly fall night, we played Number 2 ranked Michigan coached by Bo Schembechler. With two seconds left, Rob Houghtlin kicked a field goal to win the game. I rushed onto the field with the rest of the crowd, the band blaring ìIn Heaven There Is No Beer." You can watch a great clip of the kick and the pandemonium after: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQqfrbuAgvY. Later, I was a cheer leader at Iowa, kneeling on the turf and screaming myself hoarse during games, jetting with the team to bowl games. So is it true that football is a silly diversion from life and that one shouldnít get too attached? Probably. But aside from being in my blood, it's just damn fun. Period. Even when you lose. And the fact is, I like fun.

You know what else is fun? Girls getting together and having a book signing. That's what I'll be doing tomorrow night with Libby Hellman and Theresa Schwegel at the Book Stall in Winnetka (811 Elm St, Winnetka, IL, 847.446.8880). We'll be chatting, reading and signing books starting at 7:00 PM. It's open to the public and we'd love to see all of you there. If you canít make it or need signed books for holiday gifts, call the store, tell them how you want the books personalized and theyíll have us sign. You can then pick up the books or have them sent to you. Afterwards, we'll be grabbing a drink at Seulís Tavern (1735 Orchard Ln , Winnetka). For those of you who read the Izzy books, you know that my love for dive bars has split over into Izzyís personality. Iím looking forward to checking this place out. Hope you can join us.

10.26.09

October was my month for travel. First, I went to Napa with girlfriends and bled the countryside of wine. Next, I went to the Wisconsin Literary Festival in Madison (Great town, great people, great popcorn). Then it was on to Indy for Bouchercon, the world's largest mystery convention, where I cavorted with authors, readers, agents, publishers and the like. Finally, I find myself in Vegas recovering from a birthday weekend. From here, it's on to Denver for a visit with my friend Amy and to see a Rob Thomas show.

After all that, I return to Chicago with nothing planned except a few last IZZY book signings. The first is this Thursday night at the amazing Evanston boutique called Chalk. Hope to see you all there, and if not, I'll be at the Book Stall on November 17th (Event begins 7 p.m. at 811 Elm Street, Winnetka, IL 60093 (847) 446.8880) with the fabulous authors Theresa Schwegel and Libby Hellman.

Finally, for those of you following the Life After Innocence Project at Loyola, there is a great article about the love story between on our client, Dean Cage and his fiance, Jewel Mitchell, on CNN.com. The Life After Innocence new web site is due to go live in the coming weeks, and in the meantime, you can follow us on our blog (blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence/) or on Twitter (@afterinnocence) and you can catch me there too (@LauraACaldwell).

10.8.09

Well, its official - I'm writing four more Izzy books. I am into number four now. I don't have a title yet and can't decide if I should continue to use the "Red" titles. If you have any thoughts, please let me know.

In the meantime, I have a few last book events for the Izzy books this month. If you happen to be in any of these areas, I'd love to see you. This weekend I will be in Milwaukee on Thursday and Madison, WI on Saturday. Next week I will be in Indianapolis for Bouchercon, the annual mystery conference. Finally, on October 29th, I'll be in Evanston, Illinois at the amazing boutique Chalk. Please come out for a glass of champagne, some shopping, the books or just to visit. The dates and information for all these events are on my news page.

I really appreciate all the comments on the Izzy books (or the others). Keep 'em coming - anything good, bad or in-between is welcome. Write to info@lauracaldwell.com.

Take care and thanks for reading!

8.27.09

I don't know why I didn't write a series before–a continuing character with a posse of interesting people around her. It was my friend, Sarah Mlynowski, an author friend, who sat me down one day in a Manhattan diner and asked me why I wasn't writing about someone who was a lawyer and why all my redhead characters were always slutty or evil and why I wasn't using Chicago even more than I had before. I opened my mouth, had nothing to say in response, and the Izzy McNeil books began to be hatched that day.

And I have news today–there will be more Izzy books! Specifically, my excellent editor, Valerie Gray, through my excellent publisher, MIRA, have asked me to write four more and my answer was a quick, loud, YES! I admit I did pause for a second and ask my excellent agent, Amy Moore-Benson, if the deadlines were going to look the same as they did with the Izzy trilogy (editing 1 of them and writing 2 of them in one year, while I also had to finish a non-fiction book). When she told me I'd get more time than that (at least a little), I was in. (We'll be making an announcement in September about exactly when the fourth Izzy McNeil book will be out.)

I've been saying it all summer, but now it's more true than ever–if you've read the Izzy books and have any thoughts on where she should go from here, the characters you'd like to see return, those you'd rather see disappear into the Chicago night or any interesting journeys Izzy might make, let me know about them. If I haven't already stumbled upon what you're suggesting and I use it, I'll put the readers who contributed in the acknowledgments of the book, because really, you guys have been amazing. I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of you who've spent time with Izzy or have written me to tell me your thoughts. And I truly do want to hear more–anything! So write a comment, visit me at lauracaldwell.com or write me at info@lauracaldwell.com and don't hold back.

PS - Those of you who've read the books know that Izzy has been long trying to weed curse words from her vocabulary, replacing things like God damn it with God bless you, Fu#$ you with Flub you, and Son of a bitch with Son-of-a-motherless-goat. I got Izzy started on this campaign after my college friend Amy kept saying, "Mother hen in a basket!" instead of what she wanted to say when she was angry. (You can figure it out). So anyway, do you have any replacement swear words you'd be willing to share and let Izzy use? Let me know about that, too. Thanks!

8.4.09

I went on WGN Radio yesterday and had such a fun interview with Steve Cochran. I'll try to get a tape of the show and put it up here.

Today I've got an event at the law firm of Jenner & Block with the Women's Bar Association of Illinois (a group I adore). Thursday, I'll be signing all three books of the trilogy at the Tree House Café in Michigan City, Indiana. It's a fun place, and you can bring your kids and yet still get a glass of wine. Perfect!

A few upcoming events: August 19 at the Thaddeus C Fine Art Gallery (LaPorte, Indiana), Aug. 21 with Marcus Sakey at the Book Cellar (Chicago), August 25 also with Marcus Sakey at Read Between the Lynes (Woodstock, IL) and August 27 at Bloomingdales (Chicago/Gift with purchase). More details are on the News page of my web site. Hope to see you!

7.24.09

I’ve had a whirlwind couple of weeks.

I turned in my non-fiction book (the first I’ve ever written) to Simon & Schuster. The next day, I was off to New York for ThrillerFest, where I got to see some good buddies and authors I admire including Jason Pinter, Kelli Stanley, Lee Child, David Morrell, Heather Graham, James Rollins, Steve Berry (and his amazing wife, Liz), Sandra Brown, M.J. Rose, Jon Land, Joe Finder and so many more.

After 24 hours I was back in Chicago for the American Library Association. I spoke on a panel with Debbie Macomber who astounded us with the fact that she has written 150 (!!) books. I truly enjoyed the ALA. Librarians are the best, and I got to see some of my favorites from around the Chicago area.

I’m taking a break now (I swear!), while I get ready for the release of the third book in my Izzy McNeil series. Red, White & Dead will hit the shelves on August 1st. It will also be available on Kindle and on audio the same day (through iTunes or Audible.com). I'll be signing books at the Tree House Cafe in Michigan City, Indiana on August 6th. On August 21st, Chicago’s the Book Cellar, on Lincoln Avenue, will be hosting Marcus Sakey and me for an author cocktail party, and books will be available there as well.

A couple other signings are soon to be added. Please check back to the ‘news’ section on my web page for updates. Thanks!

7.14.09
Red Blooded Murder, the second in the Izzy McNeil trilogy, is out! I can't say thanks enough to everyone who has written me about it because I'm hungry for reader responses. (I realize this is OCD, but I'm actually keeping a chart of reader thoughts on different characters, settings, future plots for Izzy, etc.). So keep 'em coming please! Send to info@lauracaldwell.com.

The book is available on audio too (iTunes or Audible.com), as well as Kindle (with expanded edition, including deleted scenes, interviews and essays). The last book in the trilogy, Red White & Dead, will be released August 1. You can pre-order it now from any bookseller or Amazon.

I'll be signing with author Henry Perez this Wednesday at the Webster Barnes & Noble and with Theresa Schwegel and Megan Abbott at Mystery Book Store in L.A. on Saturday afternoon. There's more information on the News page at http://www.lauracaldwell.com Come on out and say hi if you're around.

I'm also heading this week to the Drury Lane Theatre in Oak Brook to see my assistant, Liza Jaine, in Pump Boys & Dinettes. She's gotten fantastic reviews. http://www.drurylaneoakbrook.com

6.19.09
Red Hot Lies is now available on audio (iTunes and Audible.com)!

To me, having an audio book feels like I've really arrived. My mom is a certifiable audio junkie and has had me listening to "Books on Tape" since the 80's. She gets miffed the books she gets are cut or edited. When she heard Red Hot Lies was coming out on audio, she was relieved it would be unabridged.

I was there for part of the recording of the book at the fabulous Audible.com. I flew to New York, took a train to New Jersey, and lost my wallet while on the train (a rather traumatic event when you're out of town). But I still thought the recording of my audio book was one of the coolest things I had ever seen or heard.

Audible had called me about the casting of Izzy McNeil. I told them that although she was a Chicagoan, she shouldn't have a nasal "Chicago" accent. This was an exuberant young woman, possibly naïve (although she doesn't see herself like that), but she is also smart and cultured and just plain fun. When I got to Audible and heard the production, I was blown away. Nancy Lim is an actor, narrator and an amazing reader all at once. She brings every single character in the Red Hot Lies to life.

I listen to it when I take jogs around the city now, and it's such a treat. Nancy has made the book new for me again. I was lucky enough to interview her about her process, and discuss my own. If you buy the book on Audible.com, you'll get that interview on the expanded material. Otherwise, the book is also available in your iTunes music store. Soon, the other two books in the trilogy--Red Blooded Murder and Red, White & Dead--will be too. Please check them out and let me know what you think.

6.04.09
The book launch last night at Lizzie McNeill's (chosen, in part, because my character's name is Izzy McNeil, was an absolute blast. Hello Dave, one of my most favorite bands in the world, played. http://www.hellodave.com Thanks guys! You rocked, and it was an honor. I wrote about the party on The Outfit blog, so if you'd like to read more, you can do so here: http://theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com

I'll be on Rick Kogan's The Sunday Papers show this Sunday at 8 a.m. (listen at 720 a.m. in Chicago or wgnradio.com) and at Printer's Row Lit Fest in the Harold Washington Library at 3:00 that afternoon. Stop out and say hello.

5.27.09
Had a dinner party for my Life After Innocence law students last night to kick off our summer semester. (My version of a dinner party, of course, is buying already cooked (delicious) turkey breasts at Treasure Island). Life After Innocence will be updating our blog soon and sending out a quarterly newsletter to those of you who have signed up. If you would like to receive the newsletter, please send an email to afterinnocenceproject@gmail.com.

Tomorrow is a big book giveaway for the start of my trilogy, Red Hot Lies. I'll be on WGN Radio with Steve Cochran and then my street team will be giving out a hundred free, signed copies on Michigan Avenue in front of the studio between 4:45 and 5:15. (By the way 'street team' is code for 'law students who were cajoled into the job before they knew what their grades were.') Come and hang out with us if you're in the area.

Red Hot Lies is available at Amazon now and everywhere else in the next few days, for certain by Monday, June 1. Check it out and let me know what you think. This is going to be interesting with another book (Red Blooded Murder) coming out in July and the final in the series (Red, White & Dead) hitting the shelves in August. You can link to Amazon, read the first chapters of the books, see the early reviews and more here http://www.lauracaldwell.com/books.html

If you'll be at Book Expo this weekend, I'll be signing Red Hot Lies at the Harlequin Booth at 10:00 on Saturday and at Mystery Writer's of America at 3:00.

Next week - June 3 book party at Lizzie McNeills (www.lizziemcneills.com). Come one, come all. Music by Hello Dave.

5.21.09
I'm blogging twice a month now for The Outfit, a group of cool Chicago mystery/thriller authors—Sara Paretsky, Libby Hellman, Sean Chercover, Marcus Sakey, Michael Allen Dymoch, David Ellis, Kevin Guilfoile, & David Heinzmann. www.theoutfitcollective.com. Check it out if you get a chance, and put up a comment letting us know what you think.

5.15.09
Had a great interview this week with Kim Alexander of Fiction Nation on Sirius XM Book Radio. We chatted about my new trilogy, and the fact that Red Hot Lies comes out in only a few weeks. (Wow.) You can pre-order all three books at any local booksellers or on Amazon. They even have an option for purchasing the whole trilogy, if you click here: www.amazon.com. (If someone can tell me how to hyperlink to web sites like that from Word Pad, I will give you my first born AND an advanced signed copy of Red Hot Lies).

I'll post the Sirius interview as soon it's aired. In the meantime, you can check out Kim Alexander's book reviews and interesting author interviews at fictionnationonline.com. (And check out the art work - Kim swears that's a drawing of her on the web site (done by her artist mother), but I kinda think it looks like me. Except I'd swap out that martini for a glass of Chardonnay and the cat for a bowl of popcorn).

I also had an interview with Loyola Magazine, and the interviewer ended up being one of my former law students, Brendan Keating. Next up, a chat with Rebecca from Book Page.

5.8.09
Mark your calendars: Book launch and signing for Red Hot Lies at Lizzie McDave. Open to public, so bring friends! www.lizziemcneills.com, (We just had to have it there since my character's name is Izzy McNeil), Wednesday June 3, 6:00, Music by Hello.

5.2.09
Manhattan was a blast. The Edgar Awards ran like a tight ship, thanks to Margery Flax, Laura Durham and the efficient and charming Lee Child.

The people at Audible.com are an amazing bunch. What a great, creative hub they've got going out there.Beth Anderson was kind enough to take me around and show me the ropes, and I got to watch actor Nancy Wu (who looks nothing like Izzy McNeil and yet SOUNDS just like her) narrate Red Hot Lies under the guidance of ace producer Mike Charzuk and cool sound engineer Nic Cameron.

The Life After Innocence Project at Loyola got a nice mention in the National Law Journal last week: law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNLJ.jsp?id=1202430318881&slreturn=1.

4.30.09
I'm getting ready to leave for NY for the Edgar Awards and to watch Red Hot Lies be recorded for audio by Audible.com. The audio version will be available on ITunes the same day the book is released – June 1 – but you can pre-order all three books of the trilogy now at Amazon, B&N, Borders or any local book seller.

The reviews on Red Hot Lies keep coming in, and I've been very lucky. Here's the latest from the Romantic Times: “4.5 out of 5 stars. Told mainly from the heroine's first-person point of view, this beautifully crafted and tightly written story is a fabulous read. It's very difficult to put down–and the ending is terrific.”

The semester has ended at Loyola Law School and I had to say goodbye to my Advanced Litigation Writing class, a great bunch of students who will make exceptional lawyers. My Life After Innocence project (where we offer guidance to people who were imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit) will continue to meet in the summer, because we've just got too much work to do–getting the records clear of Jerry Miller and Dean Cage (so the world no longer sees them as felons when their convictions were overturned), getting Jovan Mosley through college so he can be a lawyer, writing an amicus brief on the constitutionality of the Certificate of Innocence (which gives wrongfully convicted persons some funding from the state). If you'd like to receive our quarterly email of our project, what we're working on and support we're looking for, please email egreene@luc.edu. Or check out our blog (and a recent video of me) at http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence.

4.20.09
Wow, just got some cool news. I've been lucky enough to be published in 10 languages and twenty-some countries, but this past week I found out that The Rome Affair is available in German--my first German book. (amazon.com). Now I learned that two of my titles are coming out in Malaysia. (bernama.com). Sweet! I was already thinking of going to Southeast Asia in the fall, but now I think it's a must-do.

4.15.09
Publisher's Weekly--thank you for the great review of my June book, Red Hot Lies! Here's some of it: "Former trial lawyer Caldwell launches a mystery series that weaves the emotional appeal of her chick lit titles with the blinding speed of her thrillers. Young, sassy Izzy McNeil, lead entertainment lawyer at Pickett Enterprises, has earned envy for her success (much of which she owes to the patronage of CEO Forester Pickett) and cheeky manner, but she's starting to panic about her upcoming wedding to charming Sam Hollings. Then Pickett is killed and Sam vanishes, as do $30 million worth of Panamanian real estate bonds....[R]eaders will be left looking forward to another heart-pounding ride on Izzy's silver Vespa."

You can pre-order Red Hot Lies, or the other two books in the trilogy--Red Blooded Murder and Red, White and Dead by clicking on the "Books" page of my web site (lauracaldwell.com) or by calling your local independent bookseller. (And I would love you forever if you did).

Speaking of Red Hot Lies - Save the date! Launch party here in Chicago on June 3 at Lizzie McNeils, the great Irish bar on the river. Open to the public. Lots of other dates for book events are on the News page of my site, and more to come.

I went to a lovely dinner party last night for a German film crew in town filming a documentary about the Center on Wrongful Convictions. The filming is focusing on how the law students work to exonerate people who have been imprisoned for crimes they didn't commit. A fascinating group of guests. I tried to employ a lyric from one of my favorite Bob Schneider songs: "I want to be like Jesus Christ; Keep the party moving, give the good advice."

Today, I'll be on the Steve Cochran show on WGN somewhere between 6:30 and 7 to review a few books. 720 am in Chicago or listen at wgnradio.com.

Lastly, gosh it's nice to have a publicist who likes you enough to put you on his home page: www.authorandbookmedia.com. Any authors out there should check out Tom Robinson.

4.8.09
You can pre-order my Chicago mystery trilogy now! The novels--Red Hot Lies, Red Blooded Murder and Red, White & Dead--feature a sassy redheaded lawyer from Chicago who moonlights as a private investigator after her fiancé disappears and her client is killed. Check out excerpts and the covers and pre-order by clicking on the "Books" page of my web site (lauracaldwell.com) or by calling your local independent bookseller.

We're getting lots of appearances together, which you can read about on the "News" page of my web site. There will be a book launch party at Lizzie McNeils (It had to be there since my character's name is Izzy McNeil) in the first week of June, right on the Chicago river. It will be open to the public. Date soon-to-be-announced. And Steve Cochran from WGN asked me to be in his celebrity golf outing June 29. Clearly, I am just there for the hilarity factor as my golf skills are tragic. If you're a better golfer, though, and you want to join, it's open to the public too and it's for a great cause--juvenile diabetes. He always has a pack of cool Chicago broadcast people there and the event is a blast.

Yesterday, I got together with my law students from the Life After Innocence Project, as well as two of our clients, Jerry Miller (www.colbertnation.com/video/tag/Jerry+Miller) and Dean Cage (www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOsJsPxD_ag). Both did time (Jerry 26 years and Dean 14 years) for crimes they didn't commit and from which DNA evidence exonerated them. When both men went into the penitentiary, they hadn't used computers before, didn't have email accounts. There was no Facebook yet, no Twitter (yeah, I caved and I'm on Twitter now (user name: LauraACaldwell). Anyway, yesterday the Life After Innocence Project got to give Dean his very first laptop, and we hooked him up with a GMail account. He wants to use the Internet to explore learning a trade and getting an apprenticeship. A photo of yesterday will soon be posted on our blog: http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence.

3.15.09
The city was jumping yesterday with early St. Patty's day revelers. It'll be interesting to see the place on Tuesday when the real professionals come out. On the 17th, I'll be at the Celtic Lawyers Lunch (which I lovingly refer to as the Drunken Lawyers lunch).

My oldest friend in the world, Ace Baker, was in town last night doing sound for a band called Kinky. Before I went to the Congress Theatre to meet him (by the way, the Congress has got to be the coolest theatre in Chicago), I looked up Kinky on the internet. I read something like this, "Kinky makes dance music with guitars, a North African confluence of reggae, hip hop, Arabic pop, and traditional tribal music. Kinky is electro-rock fusion, a borderless funk.î To which I replied, "Huh?" But when I saw them in person, I got it. They've got to be one of the best live bands performing today. Highly recommended. Iíll be on the Erik and Kathy show on Thursday with Anna Davlantes. You can listen at wtmx.com or 101.9 f.m. in Chicago.

2.26.09
I just got back from New York, where I went to the Rachel Maddow show with my hysterical cousin-in-law, Kent Jones, who wraps up Rachel's show every day. Here's Kent from last week talking about someone else's cousin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w19-z1hZcl4

2.17.09
I'm in Maine with author Elizabeth Flock. We're writing lots and talking about writing even more. Liz is getting ready for her new book, "Sleepwalking in Daylight" to hit the shelves on February 24. (elizabethflock.com) You probably remember Liz from her NYT bestseller, "Me & Emma". I had the pleasure of interviewing Liz for Shore Magazine's April, 2009 issue. Check it out if you get the chance. On Friday, I'll be heading to the Auto Show and will be on WGN radio with Steve Cochran in the 4:00 hour with Anna Davlantes. (720 AM if you're in Chicago or listen at www.wgnradio.com)

2.12.09
At midnight this past Saturday, I found myself dancing in a ballroom to Brown Eyed Girl with my agent, Amy. Dancing with us was a Roman soldier, a civil war army general, a woman dressed as Anne Boleyn and a World War II officer. No, I wasn't dreaming. (I believe dreams should only be recounted to your spouse or your therapist). I was actually at “Love is Murder”, a mystery writers' conference here in Chicago, held at a Westin hotel. On the other side of the hotel, another conference was taking place—a reenactors festival, where people gather from around the nation to dress as their favorite historical characters, ones they like to re-enact on a regular basis (reenactorfest.com). They had been kind enough to invite my agent and me into their ball to see what it was all about.

My initial thought was that this reenactor stuff was slightly crazy, but when the song was over General Ulysses S. Grant and I got talking, and he explained to me reenactors do the same thing that fiction writers do. He asked me, for example, why I like being a novelist. I responded that I love to walk into other people's worlds. He said it was the same for him. He was a history buff. He had done scores of research on Ulysses S. Grant and became fascinated with what it would have been like to be him. Instead of writing a novel about it, he decided to be the General, to find out what it would be like to dress like him, to act like him. At that point, a woman in a can-can outfit walked by and, hearing our conversation, asked if I wanted to try on part of her costume, just to see what it was like. When I said yes, she promptly dropped her multi-layered flouncy red skirt (she had a full sassy costume on underneath) and put it on me. Before I knew it I was kicking up a storm with a big grin on my face. Ben LeRoy from Bleakhouse Books was there, and I can only hope and pray the video camera he was holding ended up breaking.

I'm featured this month in Today's Chicago Woman, if you want to check it out, go to www.tcwmag.com. On February 19, the March issue of Chicago Magazine will be released and will feature an article by me on Anna Devlantes' new show, Rewind, on Channel 11. The show is fabulous, as is Anna (who can also be seen on NBC5 news), and she and I will be on Steve Cochran's show on WGN on Thursday, February 19, in the 4:00 hour to talk about it. You can listen at wgnradio.com. Finally, an article I wrote about some of my favorite Chicago books is in Michigan Avenue Magazine this month. If you're in the city, pick one up at your local bookstore or newstand.

1.23.09
I'm thrilled to be starting the Life After Innocence Project at Loyola University Chicago Law School. The Life After Innocence Project is a new practicum where my law students will have the opportunity to offer guidance and legal assistance to clients who have been exonerated after serving time in a county jail or those who have spent time in a penitentiary before having their convictions overturned. Our first two clients are Jerry Miller and Dean Cage, who served 26 years and 12 years respectively in prison for crimes they didn't commit before Barry Scheck's Innocence Project in New York helped to exonerate them. Check out Jerry on the Colbert Report, showing his incredible mix of humor and grace: www.colbertnation.com. To read more about the Life After Innocence Project, visit our new blog at http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence. Or if you're in Chicago, we'd love to see you at our launch event on Wednesday, January 28 at 5:00 p.m. at Loyola (25 East Pearson, Kasbeer Hall, Chicago, Illinois).

1.2.09
Happy New Year! The holidays have been great; hope for you, too. I was in Phoenix for Christmas, hanging with my sisters and dad, and it was a blast. I went on the WGN morning show on Christmas Eve to recommend some books for last minute gifts. For those of you who have written asking for those again, here they are.
- For the mystery lover: Trigger City by Sean Chercover;
- For young kids: To Market, To Market by Anne Miranda & Janet Stevens;
- For the dog lover: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein;
- For the Harry Potter fan: The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling;
- And for the book by the big name you can't go wrong with: the Gate House by Nelson DeMille.

Today, my assistant, Liza Jaine, and I took the day off and spent the afternoon at Spacio on Halsted. The spa was showcasing work by Chicago artist, Matthew Lew, and I couldn't help but think about how I'd met Matt. About a year or so ago, I went to Spacio by myself and was struck by the artwork on the walls. I noticed the artist's name--Matthew Lew--and went home and stalked his website (www.matthewlew.com), wishing I could buy fifteen of his paintings. The next night, I met some friends for a drink and soon we were talking to the lovely man at the next table. We all finally got around to introducing ourselves and the lovely man said his name was Matthew Lew. Yes, he said when I finally stammered out my question, he was the same Matthew Lew who showcased some of his art at Spacio. Matt and I became friends that night, and a month later I owned four of his paintings, painted just for my house. Meanwhile, I've watched as Matt's career has skyrocketed. (He's now designing for CB2). Check out his great stuff if you get the chance.

12.16.08
Last night, I turned in the third book of my mystery series for next summer--Red, White & Dead. In the book, I revisit two of my favorite settings--Chicago and Rome. It was a blast to write.

I'm taking the day off for a photo shoot for Today's Chicago Woman for their "Hottest Singles in Chicago" issue. Please stop laughing. And please don't email me to remind me
that most of the appropriate people must have had the flu.
I get it.

Last weekend, I had an amazing time at a holiday book club luncheon in Wacounda, Illinois with about fifty wonderful women. One of them, my new friend Melissa, sat at my table and later posted some details on her blog, along with photos of the cool ornaments that the hostess extraordinaire, Terri Suda, gave as gifts. Click here to visit her blogspot.

12.8.08
I just spent a great week in Portland visiting family. Ate at some great restaurants, too--Saucebox with my brother, Southpark with author Phillip Margolin, and Thai Mango more than once with my mom.

I'm closing in on the first draft of my third novel in my Red mystery trilogy due out next summer. We changed some of the titles around. The first one is still Red Hot Lies. The second one now Red Blooded Murder and the third Red, White & Dead. What do you think?

11.19.08
Thanks for all the calls and emails after my mugging last week. I am doing very well. I was a little disappointed after the incident happened because I had this idea that as a thriller writer, it might translate into real life and I might to be able to kick some ass. Um, no. But I do cower well. And on the upside, I've learned that I'm a fast healer, which is good to know. I've gone away for the week to recuperate some more. I wanted to pass along some street safety tips that Officer McGrath of the Chicago Police Department shared with me when he called me yesterday:

1. Be aware, not just of who is around you but exactly where you are. Even if it's a route you walk normally, every few blocks or so check in with yourself and say, "Okay, now I'm in the 2700 block of Racine," maybe even notice an address or two along the way. This apparently helps increase your overall awareness and then if, God forbid, something happened you could easily identify your location to the authorities.
2. Carry your cell phone on you, even if you are running, again so you can contact the authorities if need be. (Although in my case, they probably would have taken it along with my IPod).
3. According to Officer McGrath not just Spider Man has super senses, we all have them. So when your "Spidey sense" is telling you "get the hec out of here" - do it. (He used a word stronger than 'hec', but I'll let you fill in your own).
4. He wasn't sure that there were statistics to support this but it was Officer McGrath's observation as a police officer that incidents rise sharply on the night of a full moon, which was when my robbery occurred. So if you believe in that kind of thing, be extra careful on those nights.

11.15.08
You might see some media reports about me being mugged while out for a run in my Chicago neighborhood. Yep, kind of got my butt kicked. Lost some teeth, but got some new ones. The swelling is way down, the ego is still a little bruised. I'll be back to writing on Monday.

10.21.08
I went to University of Iowa, and like most people who did the same, I think Iowa City is a gem. That impression was only solidified this past weekend when I headed back to Hawkeye-land for a few speaking engagements and the football game against Wisconsin. But first, when I got into town on Thursday, I went to just about one of the coolest parties I'd ever been to. About 40 or so people in a penthouse apartment atop the newish Hotel Vetro and readings by four amazing authors–Ethan Canin, Michael Cunningham, Jane Hamilton and Scott Spencer.

The game itself was on one of those seductive autumn days, and the Hawks beat the Badgers easily. I spoke to the Honors Program, an exceptional group of students and faculty who made me wish I'd been a part of it while I was there. I was also lucky enough to speak to some of David Hamilton's non-fiction writing students, as well as a few law students and by the time I left last night, I only wished I had a few more days there.

10.15.08
Boy, who knew Baltimore could be so fun? Bouchercon, the international mystery conference, rolled into town this past weekend. Great to see so many friends like David Ellis, Ken Bruen, Dana Kaye, Heather Graham, Jamie Freveletti, David Montgomery, Rick Mofina, Barry Eisler, Jason Pinter, Kelli Sanley, Michelle Gagnon, David Corbett, Philip Spitzer, Henry Perez, Joe Konrath and Lukas Ortiz. Cool to finally meet Harlan Coben (the French film based on his book, Tell No One, is supposed to be amazing). Really wish I could have met one of my favorite writers, Thomas H. Cook. Thanks to Lee Child for throwing the big bash at Lucy's Pub.

10.3.08
I was just in Niagra Falls for my publisher's sales conference. They are truly the most amazing group of people to work with.

Recently, I was interviewed on an internet radio show called Revolutionary Muse. You can listen to it at: www.blogtalkradio.com

My article about working with a personal fashion editor was on the cover of Shore magazine this month. You can read it here: visitshoremagazine.com.

An anthology I was in (Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned From Judy Blume) got a shout out from Diablo Cody in Entertainment Weekly.

I'm headed to Iowa City soon to speak at the University of Iowa, my alma mater, and attend the Iowa/Wisconsin game. I plan to start tailgating at 7 a.m. There's nothing like a Bud Light first thing in the morning. Go Hawks!

9.17.08
I just finished editing my new novel, Red Hot Lies, thanks to some sweet work from my new editor, Valerie Gray, and my assistant, Liza Jaine. The book will be out in June 2009. It'll be followed in July 2009 and August 2009 by Red Blooded and Code Red. Yep, I finally found my third red title. Thanks to all of you who wrote in to make suggestions.

The new Michigan Avenue Magazine, put out by Niche Media, just hit newsstands today with Cindy Crawford on the cover and with articles by Michelle O'Bama, Mariel Hemingway and Bill Maher to name just a few. Look for a piece by me in the next issue due out in November or February.

8.21.08
This has been a WGN Radio kind of week for me. Rick Kogan accidentally asked me to be on his Sunday show when I saw him a few nights before at the opening of Jenniffer Weigel's show at the Viaduct Theatre (www.staytunedwithjen.com). Kogan's real guest was Marcus Sakey, my buddy and a great writer (www.marcussakey.com). His new book, Good People, is out now. Kogan is a genius interviewer who makes you feel like you're just sitting on the couch next to him (or maybe the bar stool). On Monday, I went on Steve Cochran's show with another author friend, Tasha Alexander, whose new book is A Fatal Waltz(www.tashaalexander.com). The other books I recommended were Ethan Canin's America, America and Christopher Reich's Rules of Deception.

6.29.08
I just got back from Italy, where I was teaching about the International Criminal Court at the Rome campus of Loyola University. It was my 5th visit to Rome, but it was somewhat different this time since I had an apartment and was trying to act like a local. Of course, that's hard to do when you have red hair and your Italian is wretched, but I had a blast trying.

Anyone who has been there knows that Italy is far from perfect. Lots of things often don't work–air conditioning and shower heads to name a few–and the nonchalance when you mention such things to management can be maddening. The Italians have perfected the grand shrug, that slow, exaggerated lift of the shoulders that says, "Yes, it's broken. What can I do? It is what it is." After a few such incidents, I decided that this response was a fairly Buddhist approach to life and spent much of my time there practicing the shrug and the surrender.

Of course, there's so much to love about Italy, and I found la dolce vita in a lot of little things. The packaging for one. How is it that a mini-bar chocolate somehow looks like a gift for a 15th century princepessa? And I fell in love with the word Complimenti!, which is basically a really succinct way to say, "Congratulations! Fantastic! Good job!" When the dean of my law school introduced me to the local staff on campus and mentioned that my mother, Margaret Caldwell, had been one of the first students ever at the Rome campus in the 1960s, they gasped and said, "Complimenti!" as if I had anything to do with my mother's fabulousness. Ditto for when the dean told them that I had been third generation at Loyola Law School (my grandfather, uncle and dad, William Caldwell, all having gone there). When you tell someone you're in town for a month–"Complimenti!" Show them a pair of shoes you bought (T-bone silver espradilles)–"Complimenti!" Mention just about anything worthy of the tiniest bit of praise–"Complimenti!" Ya gotta love it.

I managed to get a fair amount of writing done while I was there, mostly while enjoying the plentiful local scenery. To hear more about that, you can read my guest blog post at The Outfit, a collective blog of very cool crime writers here in Chicago, like Sara Paretsky, Libby Hellman, Marcus Sakey and Sean Chercover. theoutfitcollective.blogspot.com.

Ciao for now!

5.7.08
I was in New York last week, and the streets were abuzz with the great weather. I stayed with my good friend, author Elizabeth Flock, and got to congregate with a larger pack of amazing writers at the Edgar Awards. The Edgars are sort of like the Oscars for mystery writers–replete with the black tie gala, the cool trophies and the acceptance speeches. A former Edgar award winner, Theresa Schwagel, who I'm thrilled is living in Chicago now, gave the award for Best Paperback Original to Megan Abbott for her book, Queenpin. Tana French won Best First Novel for In the Woods. My friend, Ken Bruen, was up for Best Novel, along with John Hart, Michael Chabon, Reed Farrel Coleman and Benjamin Black, all wonderful and funny men. Congrats to John Hart, who won for his novel, Down River. At the cocktail party, I got to hang out with Michael Chabon and was fascinated to learn that as part of the Obama campaign he's been cold-calling Democratic voters to discuss the issues. This fact alone nearly made me move to New York. Can you imagine a city where a Pulitzer Prize winner (and a really cool dude) like Chabon calls you while you're unloading the dishwasher??

Yesterday, I went on the Steve Cochran show on WGN Radio. Steve called the scene in the studio an "estrogen den" because two other ladies stopped by--Patti Vasquez (www.pattivasquez.com), a whip-funny and ultra-cool comic I met last summer at Steve's annual celebrity golf outing, and Chris Blumer, a/k/a the Wine Diva (www.winedivaent.com). I'd like to officially request that Patti and Chris accompany me to every appearance I make. These girls are hysterical, and when you combine them with a pro like Steve Cochran, an hour on the radio flies by like it's mere minutes. I'll be golfing horribly at Steve's celebrity outing this summer (a performance sure to be made more ghastly by jet lag since I'll just be back from teaching in Rome).

Meanwhile, if you're interested in the books I recommended on Steve's show, they are Black & White by Dani Shapiro, Extraordinary Circumstances by Cynthia Cooper ("Journey of a Corporate Whistleblower") and Charley's Web by Joy Fielding (mystery). I also chatted about the upcoming ThrillerFest this summer in New York. For more information visit www.thrillerfest.org.

4.27.08
This summer I'll be teaching about the International Criminal Court at Loyola's international program in Rome, Italy. The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a new addition to the world of international law. The ICC came into force in 2002 and at this time, 105 countries have joined the court, including Canada and nearly all of Europe and South America. The U.S., along with Russia, China, Iraq and India have not joined the court. The ICC is a permanent tribunal, sitting in the Hague, and it will prosecute individuals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in situations where the nation states involved are unable or unwilling to prosecute such crimes.

On April 25, I had the pleasure of accompanying Loyola Law Professors Alan Raphael (with whom I'll be teaching in Rome this summer) and Jerry Norton to a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the ICC. I had a chance to meet Moreno-Ocampo, who was as charming, intelligent and engaging as I had heard. For a great read about the situation in Darfur and the efforts made by Moreno-Ocampo and the ICC, click on www.nytimes.com.

The night before the conference I went to the opening party for Artopolis, Chicago's massive exhibition devoted to art, culture and antiques. Attendance at the weekend event is usually over 50,000 in one weekend. The art on the opening night was amazing--everything from Warhols to new artists--but the watching the people, a splashy, fascinating crowd from around the world, was even better. To see videos about some of the goings-on at Artropolis, go here: www.merchandisemart.com.

4.21.08
Some of my author friends and I are finalizing plans for a book signing on July 10 in Manhattan to coincide with ThrillerFest, a great event open to readers who want to meet thriller authors, like James Patterson, David Baldacci, Sandra Brown (and me). The book signing is going to be MC'd by the wonderful Lee Child. Here are the authors I'll have the pleasure to read with: Michelle Gagnon, Tim Maleeny, Alexandra Sokoloff, Mario Acevedo, JT Ellison, Laura Benedict and Shane Gericke.

Speaking of ThrillerFest, I'm going on Steve Cochran's show on WGN Radio to talk about it on Thursday, May 6, at 4:38 p.m. (Apparently, they're very precise in the radio world). You can listen at www.wgnradio.com.

4.8.08
I've been back from Denver and the Left Coast Crime convention for a month, and I can't believe I haven't written about it. Too much damned fun. Have you ever seen the movie Best in Show? It's kind of like that. But with laptops. And people who like to kill their characters. And people who like to read about it. Some of the characters I had the pleasure of hanging out with--Theresa Schwegel, Lori Armstrong, Tasha Alexander, Marcus Sakey, Michael Dymmoch, Twist Phelan, Libby Fischer Hellman, Joan Johnston, Rick Mofina, Con Lehane, Judy Bobalik, J.T. Ellison, Les Klinger, Michelle Gagnon, Doug Lyle, and Tim Maleeny.

One of the last stops on my book tour was a signing at Bloomingdale's in Chicago. This happened to be on the same day of the St. Patty's Day parade. After that, I made a silent vow to always have book signings when drunk people roam the streets, and the stores, wearing green and shamrocks. Entirely entertaining.

My last stop was at the Plainfield Library, a delightful place with a delightful group of women. Thanks much, ladies.

Next up for me--the Edgar Awards Banquet New York with my friend, Ken Bruen; Book Expo in L.A. in May; teaching in Rome in June; and back to New York in July for the fantastic and fun Thriller Fest.

2.27.08
Musicians tour together, why not authors? I hit the road recently with Marcus Sakey and found out that book signings are a hell of a lot of fun with a friend, especially someone like Marcus who takes a healthy dose of mocking and dishes it right back. Thanks to the great people at M is for Mystery in San Mateo and The Mystery Bookstore in L.A., not to mention all the authors who stopped by to heckle us along the way--Michelle Gagnon, Rip Gerber, Les Klinger, Keith Raffel, Rob Gregory Browne and Brett Battles.

And you have to love a bookstore owner who will help mix drinks and set up for the party, too. Thanks to Suzy Takas, owner of the awesome Book Cellar in Lincoln Square, for pitching in at Dustin O'Regan's soiree for The Good Liar (and to all the sassy Lake Forest ladies who turned out in Bond gear to celebrate).

1.24.08
Wow, what a blast at the Landmark last night for the book launch party! Thanks to everybody who packed the place and the the stellar crew at Landmark for making it sparkle and look so easy. Check out Landmark at www.landmarkgrill.net.

1.16.08
A few years ago, I had the great fortune to be a defense lawyer for Jovan Mosley, a Chicago man who was forced into a murder confession when he was 19 and then spent 6 years without a trial in a holding cell in the Cook County jail, essentially lost by the system. He was saved by my friend, Catherine O'Daniel, who came upon him while visiting another inmate. ABC reporter John Garcia recently did a great story on the case. You can watch the video here: abclocal.go.com.

I also went on WGN Radio last week with Steve Cochran, one of my most favorite people. You can listen to majority of the interview on Cochran's podcast: http://caster.wgnradio.com/podcasts/scpod-121-080116.mp3.

I'm looking forward to the Chicago book launch party next week, on Wednesday January 23 at the Landmark Grill, which I'm sharing with my good friend, author, Marcus Sakey. The booze is on us, and the books will be sold, so come out and visit! It's from 7 - 9 p.m.

1.9.08
I never thought anyone would bring up my brief but brilliant career as a french horn player, but journalist Teresa Budasi managed to work it into a great piece in Sunday's Chicago Sun-Times.

12.30.07
Thanks to the hundreds of you who have emailed me about my new book, THE GOOD LIAR! One of the best things about being an author is knowing that someone is reading your book. Maybe it's entertaining them, maybe it's making them think, maybe they're using it as a coaster for a New Year's Eve highball. It's all good.

Here's to a great and safe New Year!

12.18.07
The reviews are starting to come in for THE GOOD LIAR.

From Publisher's Weekly:
"Caldwell's taut, enjoyable thriller hits the ground running, crafting a married-to-the-mob scenario that's believable and chilling, then taking the show around the world... Caldwell's plot moves smoothly, juggling a number of perspectives without losing steam."

From Booklist:
"Caldwell, best known for chick lit, including The Night I Got Lucky, now ventures into thriller territory. When Liza Kingsley set up her best friend, Kate Livingston, with Michael Waller, she never imagined they'd fall in love and marry within a matter of months. Liza and Michael share a secret: they're both members of the Trust, a covert operation founded by Liza's father to protect U.S. interests. Kate happily settles into her new marriage, but she can't help but notice strange things about her husband's life. Why is she forbidden to enter the private meeting rooms at his restaurant? Why is their house bugged? Liza is chasing down a mystery of her own: Who killed her former lover, a Russian journalist who was investigating the Russian mob? Filled with romance and intrigue,this thriller will both please Caldwell's fans and attract new readers."

From Armchair Interviews:
"Laura Caldwell has climbed the literary ladder right to the top of romantic suspense/thriller writers. She is a master at characterization and the multilevel plot is filled with near unbearable tension as the danger mounts. Nothing is as it seems in this exciting novel that kept me reading most of the night. Armchair Interviews says: You will love the climax of the story that is satisfying and totally unexpected."

From The Chicago Contingent:
"Laura Caldwell got her start in Chick-Lit, inched toward Romantic Suspense, and although The Good Liar does revolve around a relationship, she has definitely crossed into the realm of espionage and international thriller. After a recent divorce, Kate Livingston didn't think she'd fall in love again so quickly. But when her friend Liza sets her up with a colleague, just to take her mind off her ex, they hit it off immediately and end up getting married. At first, the rush and spontaneity is romantic, but soon Kate realizes her husband isn't exactly who he seems, and neither is her friend. Another solid read, Caldwell kept me glued to my seat and flying through the pages, not letting up until the very end."