Love is Murder...

Hello all! My name's Jason Loeffler, and I'm a Senior English and Writing double major at Drury University. My undergrad experience has been amazing, and I think I'm both prepared and excited to enter the world of publishing (as both writer and editor).

I'm enrolled in my university's Honors Program, and my capstone project is - and remember I chose to do this willingly - to write a full length mystery novel. It sounds grueling, and my draft is due in a few short weeks, but the project is going to turn out great.

Part of the reason for that is the mystery writer's conference the Honors Department sponsored me to attend. I found the "Love is Murder" conference in an online search, submitted a proposal, and the department agreed to send me to Chicago for a weekend. I learned so much from this experience, and I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to gain practical advice from published writers, agents, and editors.

The conference included a number of informative seminars, guest speakers, countless networking opportunities, great food, and a chance to pitch the idea for my novel to agents and publishers. After the conference, I even stayed around the Windy City for a few extra days to do some walking around and research for my book, which happens to take place in Chicago.

In part for the Honors and English departments at Drury, and in part for my own benefit, I agreed to set up a blog to chronical my adventures, starting at the "Love is Murder" conference and ending...well, I haven't written the final act to my story yet, so we'll just see how far I go!

"Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination." - Oscar Wilde