Abra Cadabra

You just don't know when something you learned will come in handy. I originally took the magic class with the Great Houdanni because I was writing a script about a kid, Woody Finkle, who becomes Principal for a Day and everything goes wrong. Woody was a kid magician and eventuaully used magic to save the day.

Apparently woman aren't big on being magic students. The class had twenty men and three women. Anyway, I learned lots of the secrets behind illusions and how to pull off a trick. I briefly toyed with the idea of putting together an act and seeing if I could become a member of the Magic Castle (a famous Los Angeles magic club).

Now all these years later, my knowledge of magic is suddenly useful. In addition to the crochet mysteries, I am going to be writing a second series for Berkley Prime Crime about a dessert chef who puts on yarn retreats in the northern California town of Cadbury by the Sea at a retreat center that is picturesque and a little bit sinister. The dessert chef, Casey Feldstein, has an ex boyfriend who doesn't want to be an ex. His name is Dr. Sammie Glickner and while being a urologist, his real passion is magic. And thanks to the Great Houdanni's class, I'll be able to give him some illusions and the patter that goes along with them.

Now if I could just figure out a way to use that tap dancing class I took.

Have you found that some special knowlege you have has come in handy in an unexpected way?