So interesting about catnip. I have had many cats in my adult life and only one has absolutely ignored it. And another one behaved very badly after imbibing
"Behaved very badly." I can imagine . . . I once got clawed when I (unwisely) tried to separate a cat from his recreational drug of choice. 😗 Thanks for the book order, Toni!
I LOVE all your books/short stories, etc. I'm really enjoying The Khat Who Became a Hero. Your descriptions of the characters in your stories (human or otherwise) are WONDERFUL. The characters - short term or long term - become REAL.
I also enjoy the information that comes along with a particular story - in this case catnip. It's just AMAZING. Keep sharing. I so look forward to more.
I have read ALL of your series of mysteries IN ORDER, consecutively. I'm currently finishing your series of Victorian mysteries you wrote with your husband Bill under the name Robin Paige. It is such a joy to be able to do that now. When the books were first released my late (beloved) husband and I would go to Border's Books around Christmas time and pick up the newest book. We had to wait a year for the NEXT one. NOW, with my Kindle, I own ALL the books and can read them without waiting for the next one. I love it...
Carolyn! So glad you found your way here! I share your pleasure in being able to lay hands on a favorite series and read it end-to-end. It's a good way to appreciate the many stories that get woven into a long-running series and to watch the author's maturation, from early to late work. (We all do grow, or we don't last very long in this business!) Looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts and questions!
Exactly. Until the l990s, most mystery series were simply one after another standalone, like Nancy Drews. As the genre matured, long-running series developed an arc, which added the kind of series plot you're thinking of--invisible to casual readers who just pick up one or two books at various points in the series and even to readers who grab the books as they come out but read with big gaps between installmenets.. A full-series read is a heavy lift. Only a small percentage of readers can tackle it.
I love being able to read a series end-to-end. But I love to read. I started reading adult books before kindergarten (my Dad really encouraged me). As long as the books didn't include "sexuality" (not pornography, but sexually explicit) my parents didn't care what I read. I'm actually not sure they would have approved of some of the books I read if THEY had read them - mostly for "adult" themes. I loved Jack London and some of his stuff was pretty heavy.
The single good thing my father shared with me was a love of reading. I followed him into the adult stacks as soon as the library permitted. He was fond of Dickens, classic British mystery, 1940s American noir, and Westerns, so that's what I read. Reading was the joy of my young life, too, Carolyn--and look where it took us!
My Dad loved history. He got a masters degree in thermal dynamics from Northwestern (in Chicago) - he designed the casing for the first atomic bomb among other things - but he was raised during the depression and I suspect his parents pushed him into a career that was secure. His REAL love was history. I love it too, but my REAL love in books is mysteries. The good ones - like yours - include historical themes or eras. I've read a lot of "straight" history, but I've learned a LOT of history from great mysteries from Arthur Upfield to Robert Van Gulik to yours.
Well you know how I feel about The Cottage Tales. I'm trying to figure out how to urge someone to produce a movie based on those wonderful 6 books. Sigh...
In the shop, I suggest a cup of Catnip tea as a sleep aid. I tell my customers that they can sit and sip their tea while they watch their cat get high on the leaves. I once made a cup of catnip tea as part of my Master Herbalist studies and made the mistake of leaving it next to my computer, where my cat had never explored. Suffice to say my keyboard ended its existence full of said tea. I was lucky it wasn't the hard drive.
Also, I wonder if it would repel deer in the gardens as well as it does mosquitoes on us.
Good suggestion, Karen, and much tastier than valerian. Funny about your cat and the tea. Makes sense, since it's the scent that lures them and that tea must've smelled delicious. 😍 In England, that herb was so ubiquitous that people put it to many uses. Maud Grieve collected quite a few: https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/c/catmin36.html (So glad her book is online--easily searchable!)
I definitely need to make that clearer. Substack is quite an amazing platform, with both email delivery *and* online display and archiving. I haven't begun to use all the possibilities. (Never enough time--you know how that goes, I'm sure!)
I protect my catnip with the top of a small animal cage (the wire portion). I've never found the cage moved (really, Fanny?), but I suppose it could be anchored with U-shaped tent stakes. Cats can nibble on the portions of the plant that grow through the cage wire, but can't do the destruction that they would if they could get to the base of the plant. Cages can often be had for free or inexpensively if you look out for a secondhand one.
You're not alone, Penny. When I'm reading (both fiction/non) I often wish for supplemental footnotes. Some readers find them distracting, but I agree with you. The text is a place to begin thinking and exploring, not to confine us as readers. (Not sure that makes sense.) It would be nice to have the note material in the margin, rather than as an endnote, but that's probably too much to ask for.😔
Have forsythia in full bloom just now, and yesterday went to the garden centre for a bowl of light orange pansies and a mixed pot in similar colours to Fannie’s border - even today makes the porch look inviting.
Lovely! We're surrounded with fields of wildflowers here, so I'm not yet tempted. And when I am, it'll be so hot and sunny on that back deck that I'll probably resist the temptation.
On a damp, miserable day, what a tonic to see the picture of Fannie’s sunshiny border - thank you 😍 The catnip info is so true - I learned to grow it in a spot away from any tender plant I was nurturing, and it can grow aggressively if allowed to do so. Can’t wait to find out what Important Business is occupying Khat, such fun.
That's a treat, isn't it? Such fun to be able to add photos to the text (can't do that in books--costs an arm and both legs). Wouldn't you love to have a border like that?
Interesting stuff about catnip. I was wondering why Fannie would plant it if not for cats, but I guess you gave us the answer--insect repellent. I thought briefly of putting it on my patio to ward off mosquitoes, but I don't want to attract all the neighborhood cats.
You know, you're right to ask that writerly question, Judy. Fannie's choice isn't very well motivated--but happily, I can fix it in the online version. If you want to see what I did, copy/paste this link: https://susanwittigalbert.substack.com/publish/post/141675919 Search for "pesto" and tell me what you think. (You're also right: it WILL attract the local cats.)
I knew about catnip tea but never pesto. Not sure I could go there. You'll laugh at me but I haven't yet gotten to the point of trying dandelion greens in salad! Such a wimp!
Agree about that pesto. Maybe half catnip half blander greens? Interesting process: using the comments as place to discuss possible revisions. Makes me think of possibilities for interactive story-building.
I've been curious about it, too--one of my reasons for moving over to Substack. I'm going to try it here, starting off in a limited way at the close of this story. We'll see where it goes from there--depends a great deal on the interest of readers and on my available time. We may run short of both. 🙄
I wonder if Khat is leaving hints for China as to where he might be with his roll in Fannie's catnip. 😉 Love all the info about catnip! It is interesting to see how differently cats react to catnip. I wonder if they may have a different reaction to the roots as some people are said to have had? When planting, I do try to keep all the mints isolated from one another, to avoid cross pollination. Some combinations can really spoil the scent and flavor of say a chocolate-mint or spearmint. Good to keep in mind that catnip is of the mint family for this purpose.
On a different note, I am down to my last 50 pages of Someone Always Nearby. I am admittedly a slow reader. And when I really want to take everything in, my reading slows to a crawl. As I knew nothing about Georgia O'Keeffe beyond liking some of her paintings, and knew absolutely nothing about Maria Chabot, your book has given me so much to think about. I also have never been to the SW of the US and though I always found it interesting, it is another unknown for me. You have done a great job of opening up that landscape to my mind and helped me place these very unique women in that setting, as well as time period. I do hope fans of Georgia O'Keeffe will read Someone Always Nearby. I think it is a great example of how historical fiction done with care can help us see into another time.
Yes, those inadvertent mint crossings can be problematic--I've had that happen. Also, it's good to remember that mint can be toxic to cats: https://www.catster.com/guides/can-cats-eat-mint/ So best not to interplant. (I think I'll add that link to the extras in the online version of this episode--thanks for bringing it up!)
Glad you're enjoying SOMEONE. I love that area. We had a cabin on the other (eastern) side of the Sangres--sold it after the Hermit's Peak fire. Such a remarkable landscape. And a remarkable pair of women who lived through a fascinating era.
Susan, thank you for your info about mint being toxic for cats. Perhaps another good reason to be careful where we grow both catnip and the various mints.
I do remember the long-lived Hermit's Peak fire and your concerns about your cabin. It was another time when I reflected on how I would like to be able to spend time in the SW and see the grand beauty there.
I also added that link (possibly toxic mint) to the online story. Glad you brought up the mint issues. Interesting: being able to make revisions in a "published" story, because we have an accessible online publication.
This is an example of interactivity, Georgeann. If Sandy hadn't mentioned the problem of planting mint nearby, I might not have remembered (and looked for) the information on mint toxicity. And yes, indeed: having the "official" version of the story online means that the file can be easily updated--not so in print, which turns a book into an *artifact.*
Me too, Debbie. Fannie just popped up with that--I didn't plan it. We never know what our granddaughters will get up to, do we? If Caitlin Clark were my granddaughter, I would get a season ticket to all her games. 😍
So interesting about catnip. I have had many cats in my adult life and only one has absolutely ignored it. And another one behaved very badly after imbibing
Ordered the new book yesterday.
"Behaved very badly." I can imagine . . . I once got clawed when I (unwisely) tried to separate a cat from his recreational drug of choice. 😗 Thanks for the book order, Toni!
I LOVE all your books/short stories, etc. I'm really enjoying The Khat Who Became a Hero. Your descriptions of the characters in your stories (human or otherwise) are WONDERFUL. The characters - short term or long term - become REAL.
I also enjoy the information that comes along with a particular story - in this case catnip. It's just AMAZING. Keep sharing. I so look forward to more.
I have read ALL of your series of mysteries IN ORDER, consecutively. I'm currently finishing your series of Victorian mysteries you wrote with your husband Bill under the name Robin Paige. It is such a joy to be able to do that now. When the books were first released my late (beloved) husband and I would go to Border's Books around Christmas time and pick up the newest book. We had to wait a year for the NEXT one. NOW, with my Kindle, I own ALL the books and can read them without waiting for the next one. I love it...
Carolyn! So glad you found your way here! I share your pleasure in being able to lay hands on a favorite series and read it end-to-end. It's a good way to appreciate the many stories that get woven into a long-running series and to watch the author's maturation, from early to late work. (We all do grow, or we don't last very long in this business!) Looking forward to hearing more of your thoughts and questions!
And, yes, reading a series end-to-end is like reading a great story that is continued for 1000 pages (or more).
Exactly. Until the l990s, most mystery series were simply one after another standalone, like Nancy Drews. As the genre matured, long-running series developed an arc, which added the kind of series plot you're thinking of--invisible to casual readers who just pick up one or two books at various points in the series and even to readers who grab the books as they come out but read with big gaps between installmenets.. A full-series read is a heavy lift. Only a small percentage of readers can tackle it.
I love being able to read a series end-to-end. But I love to read. I started reading adult books before kindergarten (my Dad really encouraged me). As long as the books didn't include "sexuality" (not pornography, but sexually explicit) my parents didn't care what I read. I'm actually not sure they would have approved of some of the books I read if THEY had read them - mostly for "adult" themes. I loved Jack London and some of his stuff was pretty heavy.
The single good thing my father shared with me was a love of reading. I followed him into the adult stacks as soon as the library permitted. He was fond of Dickens, classic British mystery, 1940s American noir, and Westerns, so that's what I read. Reading was the joy of my young life, too, Carolyn--and look where it took us!
My Dad loved history. He got a masters degree in thermal dynamics from Northwestern (in Chicago) - he designed the casing for the first atomic bomb among other things - but he was raised during the depression and I suspect his parents pushed him into a career that was secure. His REAL love was history. I love it too, but my REAL love in books is mysteries. The good ones - like yours - include historical themes or eras. I've read a lot of "straight" history, but I've learned a LOT of history from great mysteries from Arthur Upfield to Robert Van Gulik to yours.
Well you know how I feel about The Cottage Tales. I'm trying to figure out how to urge someone to produce a movie based on those wonderful 6 books. Sigh...
I've looked forward to reading this all day!
In the shop, I suggest a cup of Catnip tea as a sleep aid. I tell my customers that they can sit and sip their tea while they watch their cat get high on the leaves. I once made a cup of catnip tea as part of my Master Herbalist studies and made the mistake of leaving it next to my computer, where my cat had never explored. Suffice to say my keyboard ended its existence full of said tea. I was lucky it wasn't the hard drive.
Also, I wonder if it would repel deer in the gardens as well as it does mosquitoes on us.
Good suggestion, Karen, and much tastier than valerian. Funny about your cat and the tea. Makes sense, since it's the scent that lures them and that tea must've smelled delicious. 😍 In England, that herb was so ubiquitous that people put it to many uses. Maud Grieve collected quite a few: https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/c/catmin36.html (So glad her book is online--easily searchable!)
I didn’t know that this was online. Thanks for the link and the info.
I definitely need to make that clearer. Substack is quite an amazing platform, with both email delivery *and* online display and archiving. I haven't begun to use all the possibilities. (Never enough time--you know how that goes, I'm sure!)
This is a treasure trove!!!!
I protect my catnip with the top of a small animal cage (the wire portion). I've never found the cage moved (really, Fanny?), but I suppose it could be anchored with U-shaped tent stakes. Cats can nibble on the portions of the plant that grow through the cage wire, but can't do the destruction that they would if they could get to the base of the plant. Cages can often be had for free or inexpensively if you look out for a secondhand one.
Well, Fannie loves to exaggerate. But yours sounds like a good solution. I wrapped chicken wire around an upside-down tomato cage once.
I love the herbal information almost as much as the stories.
You're not alone, Penny. When I'm reading (both fiction/non) I often wish for supplemental footnotes. Some readers find them distracting, but I agree with you. The text is a place to begin thinking and exploring, not to confine us as readers. (Not sure that makes sense.) It would be nice to have the note material in the margin, rather than as an endnote, but that's probably too much to ask for.😔
Another great installment and I loved all the information on catnip!
Thanks, Judy!
Have forsythia in full bloom just now, and yesterday went to the garden centre for a bowl of light orange pansies and a mixed pot in similar colours to Fannie’s border - even today makes the porch look inviting.
Lovely! We're surrounded with fields of wildflowers here, so I'm not yet tempted. And when I am, it'll be so hot and sunny on that back deck that I'll probably resist the temptation.
It’s one of the things I miss about England, the wildflowers everywhere. In Ontario there’s not the same variety and the erratic climate doesn’t help.
And getting more erratic. Sigh . . .
So true, my friend.
On a damp, miserable day, what a tonic to see the picture of Fannie’s sunshiny border - thank you 😍 The catnip info is so true - I learned to grow it in a spot away from any tender plant I was nurturing, and it can grow aggressively if allowed to do so. Can’t wait to find out what Important Business is occupying Khat, such fun.
That's a treat, isn't it? Such fun to be able to add photos to the text (can't do that in books--costs an arm and both legs). Wouldn't you love to have a border like that?
Forgot to mention the photo of that gorgeous border! Oh yes, I would love to see that border here!!!🥰
Interesting stuff about catnip. I was wondering why Fannie would plant it if not for cats, but I guess you gave us the answer--insect repellent. I thought briefly of putting it on my patio to ward off mosquitoes, but I don't want to attract all the neighborhood cats.
You know, you're right to ask that writerly question, Judy. Fannie's choice isn't very well motivated--but happily, I can fix it in the online version. If you want to see what I did, copy/paste this link: https://susanwittigalbert.substack.com/publish/post/141675919 Search for "pesto" and tell me what you think. (You're also right: it WILL attract the local cats.)
I knew about catnip tea but never pesto. Not sure I could go there. You'll laugh at me but I haven't yet gotten to the point of trying dandelion greens in salad! Such a wimp!
Agree about that pesto. Maybe half catnip half blander greens? Interesting process: using the comments as place to discuss possible revisions. Makes me think of possibilities for interactive story-building.
I would be very curious about interactive story=building. Years ago a SV writing group tried ... but the experiment was not successful.
I've been curious about it, too--one of my reasons for moving over to Substack. I'm going to try it here, starting off in a limited way at the close of this story. We'll see where it goes from there--depends a great deal on the interest of readers and on my available time. We may run short of both. 🙄
I wonder if Khat is leaving hints for China as to where he might be with his roll in Fannie's catnip. 😉 Love all the info about catnip! It is interesting to see how differently cats react to catnip. I wonder if they may have a different reaction to the roots as some people are said to have had? When planting, I do try to keep all the mints isolated from one another, to avoid cross pollination. Some combinations can really spoil the scent and flavor of say a chocolate-mint or spearmint. Good to keep in mind that catnip is of the mint family for this purpose.
On a different note, I am down to my last 50 pages of Someone Always Nearby. I am admittedly a slow reader. And when I really want to take everything in, my reading slows to a crawl. As I knew nothing about Georgia O'Keeffe beyond liking some of her paintings, and knew absolutely nothing about Maria Chabot, your book has given me so much to think about. I also have never been to the SW of the US and though I always found it interesting, it is another unknown for me. You have done a great job of opening up that landscape to my mind and helped me place these very unique women in that setting, as well as time period. I do hope fans of Georgia O'Keeffe will read Someone Always Nearby. I think it is a great example of how historical fiction done with care can help us see into another time.
Yes, those inadvertent mint crossings can be problematic--I've had that happen. Also, it's good to remember that mint can be toxic to cats: https://www.catster.com/guides/can-cats-eat-mint/ So best not to interplant. (I think I'll add that link to the extras in the online version of this episode--thanks for bringing it up!)
Glad you're enjoying SOMEONE. I love that area. We had a cabin on the other (eastern) side of the Sangres--sold it after the Hermit's Peak fire. Such a remarkable landscape. And a remarkable pair of women who lived through a fascinating era.
Susan, thank you for your info about mint being toxic for cats. Perhaps another good reason to be careful where we grow both catnip and the various mints.
I do remember the long-lived Hermit's Peak fire and your concerns about your cabin. It was another time when I reflected on how I would like to be able to spend time in the SW and see the grand beauty there.
I also added that link (possibly toxic mint) to the online story. Glad you brought up the mint issues. Interesting: being able to make revisions in a "published" story, because we have an accessible online publication.
Technology continues to change all aspects of our lives. A great advantage to add som information (in this case the toxicity of mint to cats).
This is an example of interactivity, Georgeann. If Sandy hadn't mentioned the problem of planting mint nearby, I might not have remembered (and looked for) the information on mint toxicity. And yes, indeed: having the "official" version of the story online means that the file can be easily updated--not so in print, which turns a book into an *artifact.*
I love this. Made me laugh out loud. "(News to me, too. I’ve never imagined Fannie as a football fan.)"
Me too, Debbie. Fannie just popped up with that--I didn't plan it. We never know what our granddaughters will get up to, do we? If Caitlin Clark were my granddaughter, I would get a season ticket to all her games. 😍
Absolutely!
👍👍👍👍😃