Well, October was rough, glad to see you all back here! I spent the month dealing with two sick cats and a whole host of other Big Adult Problems, so I didn’t read as much as I would have liked to. I’m extremely far behind my annual goal of reading 75 books, and even though I told myself I would, I probably won’t be finishing either one of my WIPs by the end of the year.
One thing that I’ve done that actually feels productive is writing and submitting short stories and micro-fiction. And good news is that I have two stories going live in November! I’ll be sure to send out links with my weekly edition of Silver Screen Sleuths just in case you’d like to read them. Fiction! What I actually try to get paid to write! Go figure.
The other good news is that editorial planning i/r/t mystery content is extremely easy in the month of November.
This month, I’m going to be talking about noirs and noir-adjacent films:
First up will be 1985’s WITNESS, starring Harrison Ford and Lukas Haas. When the new STAR WARS movies were coming out, I told my husband that if he paid me $100, I would, at the first appearance of Han Solo, shout into a crowded theater, “Hey! That’s the guy from WITNESS!” but he did not, so I did not. WITNESS is such an interesting combination of genres (noir, cop investigator, cozy setting), so I’m very excited to talk about it.
Next up will be BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE, which is not quite a sleuth movie, but there’s enough of an over-arching concept of “What the hell is going on?” that I’m going to say it is, at least, a mystery movie. I like that it’s a period piece but it doesn’t feel nostalgic. I also haven’t seen it in easily five years, so I’m thrilled to re-visit it. I simply cannot believe that movie came out in 2018. It feels like just yesterday. Is this what getting older is like?
The last will be the noir-comedy DEAD MEN DON’T WEAR PLAID, directed by Carl Reiner and starring Steve Martin from 1982. I have never seen it. I love a spoof of private investigator movies more than I even love the genre itself, so I’m really very excited. This will be quite the experience for all of us– is this movie even remotely as popular as other Steve Martin movies? Did you know it was the final screen credit for legendary costume designer, Edith Head *and* legendary composer, Miklos Rosza? Will I even like it? Or will I like it so much it basically becomes my personality for the next few weeks?
What I’ve Read Recently
I picked up Colleen Cambridge’s AN AMERICAN IN PARIS mysteries 1 & 2 a little while back, and thankfully 3– A FASHIONABLY FRENCH MURDER- just popped onto Kindle Unlimited recently, so I devoured that in two nights. Set in 1950/1 Paris, Tabitha Knight is contemporary to Viviana Valentine, but her sidekick is none other than Julia Child. The series similarly blends that cozy perspective that comes from having an unprofessional female sleuth and the private investigator series– Tabitha is very progressive, urban, and there is “blood on the page” in ways you normally don’t get with cozies. Also, the constant discussion of French food is divine. I am a pretty hardcore vegetarian but I still end up salivating over the threat of coq au vin and other French foods.
A fun little bonus? In the third book, Tabitha meets Christian Dior and gets to wear the dress that Tally Blackstone is wearing when we first meet her in VIVIANA VALENTINE GETS HER MAN– the Francis Poulenc dress!
What I’m Watching
This month on Ticklish Business, we’re doing our Films of Resistance series, which isn’t as serious as you might imagine. My normal go-to film for a concept like this is THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS, but I suggested we do that last year for International Month, so in the spirit of no-repeats, it didn’t get dragged out for our new Resistance theme. Kristen has chosen George Cukor’s 1950 film, BORN YESTERDAY- one of my favorite films, too– and Hal Ashby’s COMING HOME from 1978. I’ve chosen Milos Forman’s HAIR, from 1979, and Stanley Kubrick’s DR. STRANGELOVE from 1964. In addition to the aforementioned movies for Silver Screen Sleuths, I also need to get into the holiday spirit with some films– I’m sure I’ll be doubling up DEAD MEN DON’T WEAR PLAID with PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES and (eventually) the documentary about John Candy, I LIKE ME. I know it’s been out for a little while, but HAIR always makes me uncontrollably sob, and I’m not sure if I have the strength for two emphatic crying jags this month.
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