I had to stop reading what's her name with the pub titles, after a couple in a row that all had the same small child and mysterious beautiful woman bewitching Jury.

Martha Grimes! Yes, there's always a cute kid in difficult circumstances somewhere who remind Jury of himself as an orphaned child, and there's generally a feisty elderly person. It got to the point where I just read them for Melrose Plant and Jury's actress neighbor. Not a good thing when the supporting cast is more interesting than the star.

I loved Grimes for the first few, and then she got repetitive and damned annoying.

The first one, though, had one of my alltime favourite lines in a mystery novel: Melrose Plant being offered a Sobranie and answering, no, thank you, I don't smoke crayons.

wrod. Who is that? I'm over her anyway, though. But now I look at mysteries as Before Hard Revolution and After though, because that one rocked my world so deep. I might pull out the "t-word" if Susan doesn't hit me over the head with it, because I thought it transcended something.ETA: And of course, the hivemind finds the name.

Melrose Plant being offered a Sobranie and answering, no, thank you, I don't smoke crayons.

By the madly flaming antiques dealer, yes. I miss the mystery writer who was having the somewhat relationship with Plant. Everyone's relationship dysfunctions got boring, too, though. Which is why I don't like soap operas. I just want to yell "Grow up, all damned ready!"

Sometimes I like that, sometimes I don't.

It got to the point where I just read them for Melrose Plant and Jury's actress neighbor.

Totally.

Cruel Sister, with the exception of the four or five page epilogue?

Done!

My desired minimum was 72,000 words. Desired maximum was 80,000. At the moment? 76,078 words. 370 manuscript pages, probably around 375 and 77,500 at the end. Perfect length.

Please DO NOT LET IT SUCK.

Can't you generally tell on your own if it sucks or not? Not the typical "that could use a tweak here for clarity" stuff, but the Big Suck. If something of mine sucks, I get a creeping sense of impending catastrophe as I write, which I then have to track down and hack at with a machete.

Normally, yes - in my sleep. But this one's had some unusual circs attached to it: my own distaste for the jerking around the publishers gave me. The burning desire to work on the Kinkaid Chronicles, not this. The fact I walked away from it for four months while they decided whether they wanted it or not.

Slightly different sitch, here. Rereading the bit I just wrote, I don't think it sucks. But I want feedback.

Yay, Deb. You might always feel it's a little weak, but I bet it won't show.