NOT YOUR USUAL SUSPECTS

A group blog featuring an international array of killer mystery, suspense, and romantic suspense writers. With premises and story lines different from your run-of-the-mill whodunits, we tend to write outside the box. We blog several times a week on all topics relating to romantic suspense and mystery, our writing, and our readers. We welcome all comments and often have guest bloggers. All our authors can be contacted separately, too, using their own social media links.

We find our genre delightfully, dangerously, and deliciously exciting - join us here, if you do too!

NOTE: the blog is currently dormant but please enjoy the posts we're keeping online.


Julie Moffet . Cathy Perkins . Jean Harrington . Daryl Anderson . Nico Rosso . Maureen A Miller . Sandy Parks . Lisa Q Mathews . Sharon Calvin . Lynne Connolly . Janis Patterson . Vanessa Keir . Tonya Kappes . Julie Rowe . Joni M Fisher . Leslie Langtry

Monday, January 30, 2017

Why I Read.

I tried. I wrote a whole post on reader events and swag but the longer I looked at it the more I realized I couldn’t post it.

In light of what’s happened in our country the last few days, it felt disingenuous to talk about something on the fun/frivolous side.

Don’t get me wrong. I know the world continues to revolve and businesses must continue to run. Writers must continue writing, promoting and selling their books. But there is a time where we must stand up for ourselves and our beliefs. To lock out the real world and what’s happening in it doesn’t do any service to anyone. Will I lose readers because I want equality for all Americans? I guess the answer is yes. (Which truly astounds me, but...) The opening line of the constitution is "We the people of the United States..." Not "we the men" or "we the white guys in powdered wigs" or "we the christians." I don't understand the need of some people to dictate how others live their lives. Live and let live. It's not so hard to do. I don't understand what happened to compassion. 

Personally, my social media has been cut by more than half. I find it hard to post about books when so much upheaval is happening in the country. Don’t get me wrong, in this instance, I think upheaval is needed and is a good thing. Americans should voice their opinion peacefully when so much is at stake.

For instance... if Americans really embodied what the Statue of Liberty stands for then they should be furious with the current state of affairs. Here is a small – and widely known – section on the monument’s plaque written by Emma Lazarus:

 "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"





Powerful words, are they not? 

To ban people because of their religion goes against everything our country stands for. There is NO religion synonymous with terrorism. None. Terrorists come in all shapes and sizes from all religions and all walks of life. To hold a whole race or religion accountable for the actions of a few is despicable.  America has plenty of its own homegrown terrorists like Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, Eric Robert Rudolph, and most recently Dylann Roof among many others. But there was never a thought to ban the white guy.

America is made up of people from everywhere who have different beliefs. Why is that bad?

Let's look at some cliches: Strength in numbers. Divide and conquer.
They are cliches for a reason. We are being divided and prime for being conquered. 

To sit by and watch/let the country move in its current direction without speaking out is to condone it. I can’t do that. To me, this is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It is an American issue. It's about common human decency. I'll repeat that. 

Common human decency.

We are all part of the human race. We all bleed the same color. 

So I protest. I call, write and email senators and legislators. I do research and choose where I spend my money.

And I read. I’m so sick to my stomach by what’s happening that I NEED books to escape. I need to forget for just a few minutes everyday that the world has turned upside down. I need to believe that we’ll come through this and everything will be okay. Romance helps me believe that happily ever after is possible.

That’s why I read.


These views are solely my own as I cannot speak for any other participants of this blog.

5 comments:

jean harrington said...

Well, you spoke for me, Dee J. Bravo!

Anne Marie Becker said...

I've been so grateful to have RITA books to read/judge and also plenty of stuff on my TBR pile, because not only has the political/social stuff been disheartening, but it snowed buckets here for nearly a week and it's still everywhere. Sometimes I need to disappear into my hidey-hole and hibernate (a.k.a., read). ;)

Dee J. said...

Hi Jean,
Thank you. I appreciate it.


Hi Anne Marie,
Me too!!! So thankful for those RITA books! Sorry about your snow. I'm feeling guilty for my 77 degrees right now! I understand the hibernation on many levels!

CathyP said...

I've tried so hard to separate writing life from the rest of my life.
But enough is enough.
I'm appalled on so many levels by the events of the past week. Hello, separation of executive, legislative and judicial branches? Un-Constitutional much? I'm appalled that one petty little man, who despite his tantrums to the contrary, did not win the popular vote. There are huge segments of the population who think his edicts are either wrong-minded or illegal, but I totally digress and should probably delete this response.
The rapid fire barrage of head-spinning edicts have left the country reeling and so many of the nuances are glossed over in the overwhelming emotional impact. My only hope is the activism continues and more of the Republican Congress blocks his attempts to be king - to be legislator, executive, judge, jury and executioner (because torture - ahem DOESN'T - work ya know)..
So yes, I'll read my Rita books and attempt to tell stories that entertain...while doing what I can to exercise my Constitutional rights to protest policies I disagree with.

Dee J. said...

Hi Cathy,

I'm so glad you didn't delete your post. And may I follow it up with a giant, AMEN!
You are spot on and I'm in total agreement. We will rise up. Thanks for your honesty.

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