What deb said, ita. Very compelling.

Here's one "discovery" from "A Model Citizen" . She was really dead, not just an actress smeared with stage blood waiting for some brilliant TV detective to try his skills. Then, I felt guilty. I looked and saw that blood was soaked into her hair, and that her beautiful face? Wasn't so beautiful anymore.

"Oh, crap," a uniform I couldn't identify said. "We've got another one back there. Looks like she fought like hell, too." It was April, so called flake, possible ex-felon attendant."Half of her fingernails are torn off. She must have scratched the hell out of this lowlife." My nerves were jangly and I felt both unreal and horrified about making these guys step around my vomit. The smell was not like a visit to the Body Shop, either, of course,especially added to the tang of blood. Maybe that was why I felt faint. Or maybe it was screaming for five minutes to get somebody to call the police.

erika, holy shit.

Did I mention, BTW, that the winner of that contest we're going to enter "AMC" in come October gets a $10K book advance, and a book deal?

Another one, with a Jay Landsman homage in it:
Being "Beyond Bitch" had not been protection enough for April Riley. Whatever Jessica had thought of her, in the end she had tried to save her life.
"Well," Brian said. "That blows my suicide theory all to hell then." Petrosky and his sense of humor.

"Suicide?" the uniform, still wet behind the ears and academy serious said, "How do you figure?"

"Banging her head against a wall. Every year 24 Americans beat their own brains out. Don't you know anything?"

"I guess not, sir."The youngster shifted from foot to foot and looked uncomfortable. Probably wished he was writing traffic tickets...Phoenix has the highest per capita red light runners in the nation; we're very proud.

Wow...ten thousand green dollars?! I knew about the publication, which, major prize in itself, but not the flow.

Yup. Ten grand. See why I want it to win? Besides, yours comes with a built-in promise of a quote from me (heheheheheh).

Petroskey!

Deb, the Bucks County Library now owns Famous Flower -- I requested that they buy it, and they called today to say it's in. Wheee!

They already own Weaver, and I am fully prepared to request that they buy Matty, too.

That was a homage to the great Jay Landsman, made famous in "A Year on The Killing Streets" for asking a timid rookie if he had found a dead old lady's pogo stick yet.

erika, I vaguely remember that - I need to reread.

Amy, WOOT!

It's sick, but cracked my shit up.