Crime Doesn’t Pay . . . Enough!
The Dallas
Mystery Writers
This is the website for the
Dallas chapter of the Mystery
Writers of America. We are
open to writers of all genres
from mystery to romance to
speculative fiction and all points
in between. If you want to write,
or write better, you are welcome
to attend any of our regular
workshops.
Membership in the national
MWA is not necessary to attend
the Dallas group meetings.
There are plenty of benefits in
joining the MWA, but there's no
membership requirement to
attend the Dallas meetings.
Membership dues are $50 per
year.
Click the “Pay Membership
Dues” button to submit through
PayPal. Members attend in-
person meetings for free, and
get the Zoom link for meetings
they prefer to attend remotely.
MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS:
•
No door fee at meetings
•
Zoom link provided for every
meeting
•
NEW! Free 30 minute one-
on-one session with one
professional writer member
(LaRee, Sandy, Susan, or
James) each year.
LOCATION:
The Dallas MWASW group
meets the first Saturday of each
month (except January) at the
Olive Garden, 4240 Belt Line (at
Midway), Addison, TX, 75001.
Meeting time is 10:15 AM –
Noon, followed by lunch.
There is a $10 fee for non-
members (cash only) for the
program and drinks-only
attendees when we meet in
person (members get in
automatically). No reservations
are necessary there’s always
room for another writer. All who
attend are encouraged to
remain and break bread(sticks)
with your fellow writers.
Contact info:
james@gaskin.com
Dallas MWA
Events:
Saturday, April 1,
2023
10:15 AM - Meeting
in Person (And on
Zoom! for
members)
Sandy Steen
Conquering the
Cozy
It’s A Numbers Game. 11 to
be Exact.
The 3 Step Cozy
and
8 Most Helpful Books on
Writing Fiction
The 3 Step Cozy.
Like any other writing project, cozy
mysteries have a structure, a
formula, if you will. Your readers
expect it. The 3 Step Cozy is a
simple but effective approach
even pantsers will appreciate,
providing a step-by-step plan that
works for plotting,
characterization, motivation and
pacing. In short, how to put one
together and hopefully sell it!
8 Most Helpful Books on
Writing Fiction.
Every writer needs the proper
tools to do their job. Yes, we all
have research books, and some
never go out of style, but while the
market has changed so have
concepts and reader tastes. It’s
important to update your toolbox
and these books are the Angie’s
List of valuable guides, almost
instruction manuals to make the
job easier and more marketable.
Sandy Steen has been publishing
since 1986, beginning her career
writing contemporary romance
before switching to mysteries. She
is the author of over 20
contemporary romance novels
and a cozy mystery. For years
Sandy has conducted writing
seminars on such as Creating a
Selling Synopsis, Structuring The
Contemporary Novel, and The
Dynamic Duo: Characterization
and Dialogue among others.