Mystery class

First continuing ed class at Princeton High  School last night. They offer a bunch over the course of the fall and spring--eight weeks focused on topics ranging from learning a new language to cooking with onions to samba dancing and mystery writing. I started another class like this last year, but only went twice--not because the class wasn't interesting, but because it met on Thursday nights which was one of the few times a week that both Luke and Dan were out of the house. The class costs $125, so it is highly affordable.  And classes are held in the high school, so as I was looking for the classroom, I kept passing posters for the Homecoming dance and a project for National Hispanic Heritage month, and thinking, Luke sees these same things every day. It's a beautiful school, and my class was held in the French room. I surmised this by the map of France next to the blackboard and the language exercises on the wall.

As I imagined, the class was mostly adults in their early to late sixties, with two exceptions (one younger guy and a woman who was in her early thirties). The teacher is young too--he has a two year old and a six year old. He writes spy novels and loves Stephen King. I happen to love Stephen King too because he's just a damn good storyteller, and I suspect he'll be considered the Poe of our times down the road.

We did that thing where you go around the room and introduce yourself, and some of the attendees have never written fiction, while others are dabblers, and others have written for a while. A few older ladies who like to read "cosy" (?) fiction, which they described as detective fiction lite--where the story is more about the setting and character interactions and there's no sex or bloodshed.

So now I need to think of an idea for a 10 page mystery story. I've been working on one that's about a female rapist whose victims are young guys wearing Gap sweatshirts, but I don't think that's right for this group of people who like Father Brown. I have the Philadelphia Noir character who I could continue to work with, but maybe I'll try to come up with something completely new.

The hardest thing about the class will be my desire to interrupt and give advice. Also, I now have to write a story.