Follow Your MUSE

This morning I woke with the beginning of a conversation between Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson which has no place in the novel I am writing. But I find it is always right to follow where the muse leads even if it seems a waste of time or ridiculous.

It never is!

I continued the conversation at my computer. What has come out of it is a new and unique addition to the novel. Also solved a problem I had been wondering about for months, just like that!

There is so much magic in the writing of a novel, the interplay of the characters against the history of the day, the richness of their language, and the murder mystery winding through it.

Daily work, staying with it, believe in what you are writing, become open and teachable, let research, intuition, and imagination lead you. For me, especially when it involves these two gentlemen of valor.

In the beauty of the imagination, nothing changes (and everything changes.) And thankfully the Muse leads on.

Fiction honors awarded by the ACD Society for my story, “Sir Arthur & The Time Machine.”

Do you enjoy my stories? Are there ways they could be improved? Please help me and future readers of my books by posting a review on Amazon. It would be incredibly helpful. Thanks in advance, Gretchen.

“Gretchen Altabef is, beyond doubt, one of the most preeminent writers of Sherlock Holmes pastiches.”

With an insightful foreword by Mattias Boström. The Keys of Death is NOW available in AUDIOBOOK and KINDLE from Amazon, and everywhere. And I hope you enjoy J.T. McDaniel’s brilliant narration!

In The Keys of Death, her dedication to research delivers a credible and compelling look at the world of a young Sherlock Holmes. Her impeccable characterizations, particularly of Mrs. Hudson (whom I also envision as a younger, vital woman) and supporting characters are richly drawn. The story itself builds to a stunning crescendo.

And the charming and edifying Victorian gardening journal appealed greatly to this “perennial optimist”. Ms. Altabef deserves high praise indeed for The Keys of Death as well as her previous two novels. Hopefully work on number four is currently underway!

Book blurb by Wendy Heyman-Marsaw, author of Memoirs from Mrs. Hudson’s Kitchen.

Award-Winning author, Gretchen Altabef, publishes with MX, Belanger Books, Mondadori, and Mystery Magazine.  These Scattered Houses, in Sherlock Holmes’ own voice, chronicles the conclusion of his ‘Great Hiatus’. In Remarkable Power of Stimulus, Holmes finds London awash in murders, anarchists threatening Paris, and the return of Irene Adler. Under surveillance by Moriarty’s henchmen, Holmes steps into Baker Street knowing he will find Watson’s friendship and unerring aim are as dependable as the British Rail. THE KEYS OF DEATH is a genesis story of the young occupants of No. 221B Baker Street.