Making It Write

A Writer for Hire Mystery #3

by Betty Hechtman

Writer for Hire Veronica Blackstone's latest client is writing a memoir with a shocking twist ending, until she's found dead before finishing it. Can Veronica unravel the clues within the memoir to discover the killer?

As a writer for hire, Veronica Blackstone puts her keyboard to use to help others. That includes writing advertising copy for local businesses or love letters for those with romantic troubles, or helping people publish their memoirs. Maeve Winslow needs the latter.

Maeve is the wife of a famous artist nominated for a prestigious award, and the memoir is to be released ahead of the ceremony. All of Maeve's notes are given to Veronica but for the final few pages. There's a huge surprise within those last pages, but Maeve won't reveal it yet.

When Maeve is found dead at the foot of her stairs it looks like an accident, but Veronica isn't convinced. Was the scene staged? Was Maeve murdered to keep her silent? Could clues to the surprise, and the identity of the murderer, be hidden within the notes? It's up to Veronica to figure it out and write the real story.

Genres: Mystery

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

I grew up on the south side of Chicago and in a very busy weekend, got married, graduated college and moved to Los Angeles.

Although my degree is in Fine Arts, all I ever wanted to be was a writer and I've been doing it in one form or another for as long as I can remember. My shining moments in elementary and high school always involved stories or poetry I'd written. I wrote news stories and a weekly column in my college newspaper. My first job out of college was working on the newsletter of a finance company. I worked for a public relations firm and wrote press releases and biographies. Later I wrote proposals for video projects and television shows that went through various stages of development.

I tried writing screenplays and wrote three. I sold one and another was a winner in a Writers' Digest contest.

I was lucky enough to be a stay-at-home mom and did all kinds of volunteering at my son's schools including editing and writing several newsletters.

I wrote essays and small pieces that ran in the Los Angeles Times, the Daily News and Woman's Day among others. My short romantic and mystery fiction appeared in Woman's World, and Futures magazine.

From time I was a thirteen-year-old babysitter cooking for the kids I babysat, I dreamed of writing a book about babysitting. It took a little longer than I'd expected, but BLUE SCHWARTZ AND NEFERTITI'S NECKLACE was published in 2006.

My affair with crochet began in Las Vegas. I had always had a fascination with crochet, particularly granny squares, but thought there was some magic involved with making them that was beyond me. And then everything changed that day in Vegas when I saw the kids' kit in FAO Schwartz. If the instructions were easy enough for kids, I thought they might work for me.

My first granny square was missing a corner, but when I tried again, all four corners were there. I was in awe of my own accomplishment. I had found the magic. I went granny square crazy until pretty soon I didn't need directions anymore. Then I learned there were more squares than just basic grannies and I made squares with sunflowers in the middle and other patterns. I moved beyond squares and made flowers, hearts, bookmarks and more.

I was in love with crochet and began to make scarves, purses, afghans, and shawls. I started carrying my hooks everywhere. A plane trip became a pile of granny square wash cloths, or part of a shawl. A vacation in Hawaii turned into a tote bag.

And now I get to write about it...

** Sourced from authors website

Series:
* A Crochet Mystery
* Yarn Retreat

Reviews

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise behind this story intrigued me. It is about an author, Veronica, who gets a job writing a memoir for Maeve, a seemingly normal teacher, who happens to be married to a famous artist. Veronica doesn't understand why a teacher would want to have a memoir written, but takes the job because she needs cash, and because Maeve promises her a twist ending. Unfortunately for Veronica, Maeve is murdered before Veronica knows what "the ending," of the book is supposed to be. Veronica decides to finish the memoir, and try to figure out what secret Maeve was keeping for the ending. Of course, while she finishes the book, Veronica knows she may also may encounter the murderer.

I loved the idea behind the book. It is a fun mystery, and I enjoyed the plot even though Veronica, and her love interest, Ben, drove me crazy! Without giving any of the plot away, I wish Ben would have grown a backbone and I wanted to shake Veronica at times to stand up for herself more!

Overall, while I rolled my eyes at times reading the story, it is a nice light mystery, and a great way to spend your Saturday afternoon. Thank you to Net Galley and Severn House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to checking out the other books in this series!

[Christine LaBatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The latest Writer for Hire mystery has Veronica writing a memoir for an art teacher. She is curious why someone why a seemingly basic job is writing a memoir but then she learns that her client, Maeve, is married to a famous artist, Michael Angel. Veronica is excited to get started on this mysterious memoir when she finds Maeve dead at the bottom of the stairs. At first it seems like it might be an accident, but something feels off for Veronica. While she works to solve the case, she also has to juggle her other clients and the return of her kind of boyfriend's ex-wife.

This was the first in this series I read but I enjoyed it! The mystery didn't really happen until about 20% through, so it does happen later than some. At times, it felt the focus was more on the other jobs than the mystery, but overall, a solid cozy mystery.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The latest instalment in this series which relates the adventures of Veronica Blackstone who makes a living writing for other people, whether that be love letters or a biography. She also runs a book club and gets mixed up in crime.

This title, like the others, was enjoyable without being terribly memorable; I chiefly remember this one because the great big secret which leads to murder is so terribly, terribly obvious. The sub plot concerning Veronica's love life was marginally more interesting.

[June Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

The premise behind this one intrigued me. A "writer for hire" is caught up in the murder of the woman who hired her to help her bring her book to publication. As writer Veronica discovers, the book is far from complete and, in fact, the victim, Maeve, had told her she was holding back the ending until later, hence Veronica can only rely on the very sparse and occasionally erratic manuscript to help her fill in the missing chunks. The publisher still wants the book and, well, Veronica is already driven to not just finish the book but ensure that justice is done for Maeve. Unfortunately, someone, including Maeve's celebrity artist husband, Michael Angel, famous for his paintings of a Scottie dog, doesn't want the book written. Toss in complications in Veronica's own life and, well, it makes for an interesting story.

I did find myself alternately liking and being exasperated with Veronica. To use a cliche, something she repeatedly voiced her dislike of, she tended to get on my last nerve. While initially I found her almost stream of consciousness thought patterns intriguing, offering insight into a writer's thoughts, if you will, after awhile they seemed to bog the plot down. She also needed to figure out what is going on with Ben. Ben is handy to give her the police take on certain things, like ways time of death can be determined, but he comes off as a bit of a wuss, too, regarding his ex, er, sorta ex, oh, wait, let me rephrase that. His supposedly former wife who didn't sign the divorce papers and is thus still legally his wife. Talk about relationship complications. Yet, I found myself liking both these characters and aside from the not-quite-ex, the other side characters, as well. This included some quirky members of Veronica's writing group.

I'm not sure Veronica initially grasped the danger she might be in after Maeve was possibly murdered to stop the book that she insisted on completing, but her determination to live up to commitments was admirable. So, who killed Maeve? Why? Why did Suzzanna Angel take such an immediate dislike to Veronica? Why was the book such a secret? Did the publisher know how it was to end? Who profited from Michael Angel's success? How did he get famous anyway? Why do some writing group members refuse to read another member's writings? Will Veronica ever come clean about breaking that coffee cup? Wouldn't you love to see the gluey mess she made trying to fix it? Why....oh, never mind. Not sharing any more. You'll have to read the book to find out the answers to these questions, not to mention find out where the Ben and Veronica relationship seems to be headed. As many times as I rolled my eyes at her, I still wanted to know what happened and how, so it was fun.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #SevernHouse for allowing me to spend some time in Veronical's mind as she tries to both track down a murderer and finish a book.

[Ppcfransen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite my opinions on the last book, I decided to read Making It Write. At first I was pleasantly surprised. I liked this book a lot better than the previous one. It had better pacing and the mystery was interesting.

Veronica is hired to help write the memoirs of Maeve Winslow, an art teacher married to a famous painter. Maeve promises there will be a surprise at the end. Before that, she gives Veronica all the bits and pieces she has written herself up to that point. Veronica takes home the notes and a big check and gets to work.

When she returns to Maeve’s home for their next meeting, she finds the front door open. She goes up the the attic room, Maeve’s room for her artwork and meeting people. Maeve’s not there, but when Veronica turns around she knocks over a teacup and breaks its ear. Veronica decides to hide her crime. She wraps the broken cup in some paper stuffs that in a cupboard and puts another cup from the set on the table. Veronica owns the same teacups and decides to bring one of her own in to replace the broken one the next time she’s at Maeve’s.

Why Veronica thinks Maeve is not going to notice one of her teacups is missing or that someone has stuffed something in one of her cupboards, I don’t know. We’ll never know if Maeve would have noticed, because when Veronica goes down the back stairs in further search of Maeve, she finds her body at the bottom step.

Maeve’s publisher wants Veronica to continue with the memoir; she has all Maeve’s notes except for the surprise at the end. Maeve’s husband wants her to stop with the memoir and even suggests to the police Veronica killed Maeve because Maeve asked for the check back.

Veronica continues with the memoir and with the help of her friend Tizzy, one of the aspiring writers in her writers’ group, she tries to interview other persons of interest.

I’m happily reading along until two things happen. Among the notes Veronica finds a postcard and on the back of it she reads something that makes everything fall into place for her. What’s on the postcard is not yet shared with readers. I hate it when authors hide information like that.

The other is that the next day, Veronica passes Maeve’s house and sees an opportunity to fix the thing with the broken teacup. She had not told the police about the teacup, because she thought Detective Janowski would consider it tampering with evidence. Why she thinks a broken teacup suddenly appearing will not be considered tampering with evidence, is unclear. Besides, she hid it in Maeve’s attic room. The teacup may have already been found.

I had to put the book down for a few days to work up the courage to continue.

Three stars, because for the most part I did like this story.

I read an ARC through NetGalley.

[Belinda (Belle) Witzenhausen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a complimentary ARC copy of Making It Write by Betty Hechtman from Net Galley and Severn House Publishers in order to read and give an honest review.

…a good cozy mystery with a uniquely intriguing plot and quirky cast of characters which made it a fun fast-paced cozy…

When “writer for hire” Veronica Blackstone discovers the body of Maeve, a woman she was hired by to write a memoir of sorts although it looks like an accident, certain clues make the death look suspicious. Armed with a really rough and incomplete draft from Maeve, Veronica is instructed by the publisher that she is to honor the contract and finish the memoir based on the materials she received from Maeve. Thing is, Maeve wanted to save the ending for last, keeping it a secret until Veronica was ready to write it. The memoir is about life with her husband Michael Angel, a famous artist who has received sudden acclaim and all the trappings that come with it. With an upcoming documentary, celebrity status and an award ceremony around the corner Michael and his daughter are desperate to put a stop to the memoir but to what lengths will they go to make sure it does not see the light of day. The more she delves into finishing the memoir, the more Veronica learns about Maeve’s life and what might have led to her demise.

Having read the previous books in the series, “Making it Write” was a fun, action filled entry although perhaps not my favorite. We see the return of a unique and quirky cast of characters including a crazy client, her writing group, Ben, her best friend, Tizzy and Tizzy’s husband Theo. I was not crazy about the storyline with Ben and their rocky romance, but I really enjoyed reading more about Tizzy and Theo this time around it gave the story a three musketeers’ feel. It also feels that this time there was quite a bit of repetition when describing “cliches” and her tea and crochet ritual, I feel they were brought up too often and really did not add to the story, once, maybe twice would have been suffice.

Overall, it was a good cozy mystery with a uniquely intriguing plot and quirky cast of characters which made it a fun fast-paced cozy that I highly recommend.

[S.J. Higbee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was interested to learn that this was the third book in the series – a fact I only discovered when searching for a copy of the cover after I’d finished the book. So if you are hesitating about plunging into the middle of a series, then don’t be. At no point did I feel I was missing vital information – in fact all the way through this one, I was under the impression that it was the first book in the series.

Part of the reason why I felt I was reading the first book is the pacing. It’s very leisurely – to the point that I’d begun to wonder if there was going to be a murder at all. That said, I enjoyed Hechtman’s smooth, accomplished writing and quickly bonded with the main protagonist, who narrates the story in first-person viewpoint, which meant that I wasn’t too worried. But I will say that if you prefer your murder mysteries to move along at a fair clip with regular dollops of action along the way, then this one might not tick the boxes for you.

Veronica doesn’t have a front row seat as to what is happening – and I did enjoy the fact that the police were in no mood to pour out all the details to her just because she has published a fictional detective story. So her initial sense of wrongness about Maeve’s death is gradually strengthened by the accretion of minor details. I really liked the premise – and the fact that Maeve hasn’t conveniently written down all the major issues surrounding her wish to write a memoir. In the circumstances, that wouldn’t have made sense, given that she knew the huge secret surrounding her husband’s sudden fame and had no reason to think she wouldn’t be in the middle of the project. And the final twist is a doozy – I had considered it fleetingly right at the beginning of the story, but Hechtman nicely redirects us with a strong line-up of plausible suspects. Overall, this is an enjoyable, well-plotted murder mystery featuring a sympathetic heroine. Recommended for fans of murder mysteries that concentrate more on characters and motivations and less on the gore and action. While I obtained an arc of Making It Write from the publishers via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
8/10

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why do I often discover a new-to-me series in book three? I guess it’s a test of the story, that it can be read as a stand-alone rather than needing to start at the beginning of the series so I understand the backstory.

Veronica Blackstone is a writer for hire. She writes advertising copy, love letters for people who can’t express themselves in words, and ghost writing. In Making it Write, she is engaged by Maeve Winslow, the wife of a famous artist nominated for a prestigious award. Maeve needs Veronica’s assistance with her memoir and she passes on all her notes to Veronica, bar the vital final few pages. Then Maeve is found dead at the foot of her stairs.

Veronica has doubts about the ‘accidental’ nature of Maeve’s death. Was she murdered to hide a secret that would be revealed in those last pages of her memoir? Veronica sets out to unravel the clues and discover the murderer.

Making it Write is a comfortable cosy mystery. I’m keen to read the first two novels in the series now to learn more of Veronica’s involvement in the world of words and murder.

Thank you to Severn House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

[Michelle Kidwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Making It Write
by Betty Hechtma
Pub Date 02 Aug 2022
Severn House
Mystery & Thrillers


I am reviewing a copy of Making It Write through Severn House and Netgalley:




Veronica Blackstone works as a writer for hire, because she puts her keyboard to use to help others. Including writing advertising copy for local businesses or love letters for those with romantic troubles, or helping people publish their memoirs. Maeve Winslow needs the latter.



Maeve is the wife of a famous artist nominated for a prestigious award, and the memoir is to be released ahead of the ceremony. All of Maeve's notes are given to Veronica but for the final few pages. There's a huge surprise within those last pages, but Maeve won't reveal it yet.



After Maeve is found dead the foot of her stairs it looks like an accident, but Veronica isn't convinced. Was the scene staged? Was Maeve murdered to keep her silent? Could clues to the surprise, and the identity of the murderer, be hidden within the notes? It's up to Veronica to figure it out and write the real story.




I give Make It Write five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

[Barb Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The surprise in this book was too easy to figure out. The murderer surprised me but made sense.

Although I generally like Betty Hechtman, particularly her Yarn to Go and Crochet mysteries, there are things about her A Writer for Hire series that grate. Veronica's obsession with cliches drives me up a wall (See what I did there?). Seriously, though, it's annoying.

Ed's obsession with writing what amounts to porn also got old . . . very quickly.

Since I live near Chicago, I enjoy the travelogue of her characters wandering through Hyde Park and the Loop. I realize it has been a long time since I've had lunch in the Walnut Room.

To recap the action, a local art teacher hires Veronica on the hush-hush to write her memoir, promising a big surprise at the end of the story. Oops. The art teacher ends up dead. Veronica, of course, is a suspect. That means she has to solve the murder.

Ben (who always makes me think of Barry from the Crochet mysteries . . . to the point that I've cast the same actor to play their roles in my head) gets a surprise visitor who turns his and Veronica's worlds upside down.

[Cynthia Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Making it Write by Betty Hechtman is the third in the Writer for Hire mystery series and fast becoming one of my very favorite cozies. Veronica Blackstone is a writer for hire, helping others with any writing need whether it’s advertising copy, celebrations of life, or love letters. This profession creates the perfect opportunity for her to meet new people and to discover new bodies! What a fresh and original take for a cozy!

Veronica has only one active client and is helping him pen endless apology letters, for what she is not sure, to his wife. She then lands a lucrative contract collaborating on a memoir with a local woman - until murder interrupts. Life, especially hers, seems to always have an interesting twist in store and another murder to solve.

I love this protagonist! I find her refreshing and true-to-life. The supporting characters are well-conceived and people that I would like to have as friends. There is always a twist in the plot and plenty of red herrings in this well-crafted series, which is fast becoming one of my favorites. (I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy and all opinions are my own.)

[Haley's Book Haven · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good, solid but not exceptional book. It's a quick, easy cozy mystery read. The main draw for me as a writer myself was Veronica's career which I found so interesting. I also liked the inclusion of the writing group. I will say Veronica was a little too obsessed with cliches.
My favorite side characters were Tizzy and Theo - in particular I loved how Theo was so adorable enthusiastic to be a part of everything. My least favorite side character was Ben. His and Veronica's relationship drama was dragged out needlessly.
Even though Veronica does do some 'investigating' it is more so to gather info for her memoir than it is to solve the mystery (she's not the typical armature sleuth I've grown accustomed to in cozy mysteries). I was surprised how unconcerned she was that she was a suspect in Maeve's murder.
I picked this up unaware that it is the third book in a series. You really wouldn't guess by reading it, either. This can easily read as a standalone story and it does a nice job of introducing characters and relationships. I liked this book enough that I may pick up the others in the series at some point, but I'm not rushing out to do so.

[LittleRead · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the wife a famous artist contacts Veronica for help in writing a memoir, Veronica is a bit intrigued by the air of mystery around the ending, which the woman will reveal as they get to that part of the story. Sadly, after being hired, Veronica goes to meet with the woman and start writing…only to find her laying dead at the bottom of the stairs. While paid and asked to continue to the book by the publisher, the artist husband tries to stop the book. But Veronica is committed to finishing it and finding out whether the woman fell to her death or was helped along. Believing the latter, Veronica puts herself in danger, but the writer must finish the story and that means finding out what happened to Maeve.

A great series, smart and well written. Likable and relatable characters and I’m a Scottie Mom, so the Scottie paintings were a real incentive for me. So glad I found this series. I’ll be back for more.

[Jg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throughly enjoyed this mystery and was happy to discover this is book 3 in the series, so I have two more to read. The book was fine as a stand-alone without previously reading the other two first. Veronica is a writer for hire, which is an unusual concept that I found refreshing and loved. She will write ad copy, cards, ghost write a book, you name it, so is happy when Maeve hires her to pull together her memoir about her famous artist husband and herself. She gives Veronica her hardcopy notes but before they can get started Veronica finds her dead. With a plethora of suspects this is a fun lighthearted mystery.
The covers on this and the other two books are perfect and some of the best I’ve seen, and the title is wonderful as well.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

When writer-for-hire Veronica is hired by a new client to whip her memoirs into shape, she's looking forward to the job. After all, Maeve has a contract with a publisher for her account of her life with a famous artist, and a career of her own as an esteemed art teacher at a small private school. Besides, Veronica likes her. But Maeve dies in an accident before they can get started. Veronica really, really doesn't want to refund her retainer check, but fortunately the publisher wants her to continue with the memoir. Too bad the artist doesn't want to cooperate. Meanwhile, the growing attraction between Veronica and one of her writing students seems to be on the wane when his estranged wife reappears on the scene.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Veronica is a little baffled as to why Maeve hired her to write her memoir but hey. that's how she makes her living so she helps shape the manuscript and then... she finds Maeve dead at the bottom of the stairs. Maeve's husband Michael is an artist famous for his paintings of dogs and he doesn't want the book published for some reason, but why? Veronica goes looking for answers, endangering herself and her relationship with her love interest Ben (who has his own issues). It's a light cozy read with an interesting heroine. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

[Amber Humphries · Rating 3 out of 5]

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of Making it Write by Betty Hechtman. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Severn House for providing an ARC to review.

I had a lot of problems clicking with the writing style as well as connecting with Veronica. This author enjoys her extensive descriptions of Veronica's inner thoughts and surroundings. This isn't a bad thing, it just isn't the writing style I enjoy. I recommend that everyone give it a chance because it is a well-written story. Just not in my taste.

[Maria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried and tried to get through this one. With Betty Hechtman's crochet series, the characters grew on me. The Yarn Retreat ones, the characters did not so I was unsure how I would feel about this series. This is the third one and I have given up. The main character isn't particularly likeable, although there's nothing really terribly unlikeable about her; she's just there. I got to about 20% and realized it was a chore to pick it up so I stopped.

I received a copy from #NetGalley for an honest review.

[Renee Winter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series! It has everything I love in a cozy. Awesome characters. Lots of red herrings. A solid mystery! It will grab your interest from the first and will keep your intrigued until the end. Thanks #netgalley and #SevernHouse for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

[Annarella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good series and so few instalments! This is another well plotted and gripping mystery that kept me guessing and hooked.
I love Veronica Blackstone and this story is compelling and highly entertaining.
I can't wait to read the next one.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[JoAn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This third book was another intriguing mystery by Ms. Hechtman set in the Hyde Park area of south Chicago. Veronica gets into the art world this time and meets some very diverse characters when she was agrees to help write the memoir of a local artist and his wife. Plenty of twists and several suspects kept the story moving quickly.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, Severn House and by #NetGalley. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Third installment in the Writer for Hire cozy mystery series. Fantastic characters, suspenseful, entertaining story.

[L Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved all of it.

Betty Hechtman is one of my favorite authors- I’d read anything she writes. Fun, interesting, good fleshed-out characters, love the setting, and a great mystery to tie it all together. Perfect!

[Kelly]

Third installment in the Writer for Hire cozy mystery series. Fantastic characters, suspenseful, entertaining story. This is another well plotted and gripping mystery that kept me guessing and hooked. I can't wait to read the next one.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good 3rd book.

Good 3rd book to the series. Veronica & Ben's relationship is still evolving while she is thrown into another murder of a client. Maybe she should pick them out more closely.
Guess it will help a little having a cop for a boyfriend. :)

[Sharon Dooley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting premise. Good group of repeating characters in this series which doesn't take itself too seriously.

[Valerie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book very slow. I finished it, but will not be continuing in this series.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a fun series!!!

[Weezey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always such a delight to read this series. A true comfy read. Loved the addition of Theo and all his quirky ways. Looking forward to the 4th.

[Vivian Oleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best cozy mystery writers!

No matter which one of Betty Hechtman's series I read, I can always depend on her for a relaxing, clever story. Please keep them coming!