And Now For Something Completely Different!
New Jersey born clinical psychologist Roberta Isleib took up writing golf mysteries to justify time spent on the links. Her first series, featuring a neurotic professional golfer and a sports psychologist, was nominated for both Agatha and Anthony awards.
Roberta’s new series starring a Connecticut psychologist and advice columnist debuted in 2007 with Deadly Advice. She says the work of the detective in a mystery has quite a bit in common with long-term psychotherapy: Start with a problem, follow the threads looking for clues, and gradually fill in the big picture. So this career move turned out to be a natural progression! Roberta is passionate about portraying her psychologist character as a competent professional (with flaws of course!)
Roberta is the president of National Sisters in Crime and the past president of the New England chapter. She lives with her family in Connecticut.
I’m appalled when I think about how much time I spend staring at the computer, hooked into an online world that’s all in my head. And I don’t mean just writing, but e-mailing, blogging, checking Amazon numbers, reading lists. You get the idea. I turn the computer on before I’ve even had coffee and have to force myself to turn it off at night.
But recently I’ve taken up a new hobby that gets me out of my office and out of my mind. Shortly after we adopted our Australian shepherd, Tonka, two years ago (you can see him on my website and author photos), we came to realize that he had more energy than any two people could reasonably manage. He doesn’t walk nicely alongside us, he leaps, twirls, nips, and barks—herding his people of course. Having grown up with two untrained German shepherds, I knew this couldn’t go on.
So I visited the friend who had arranged the adoption—she has six Aussies of her own who have won titles in herding contests. Here’s Tonka having his first experience with my friend’s min-herd of sheep.
Minutes after that photo was taken, the sheep stopped running, turned to face him, and stomped their collective feet. Tonka fled, his herding instincts evaporated.
Next I signed us up for a series of agility classes. Like me, Tonka’s easily persuaded to do most anything for food. So he was soon running through tunnels, weaving poles, posing on tables, taking small jumps—all in pursuit of tiny pieces of hot dog. It brings out the competitive instinct in both of us and it’s loads of fun.
Besides, an hour away from the computer screen does wonders for my motivation to write! So if you e-mail me and I don’t answer immediately, Tonka and I are out on course.
Roberta Isleib
www.robertaisleib.com
PREACHING TO THE CORPSE hits bookstores on December 4!
