Five by Five: Noir novel brings a different perspective to southern towns

By Max Bowen

Writing coach and teacher Brandi Bradley brings her professional experience to bear in writing “Pretty Girls Get Away With Murder” set to be released on March 14. Here’s a look at the story synopsis:

When a young entrepreneur is killed, everyone in town points fingers at his fitness influencer ex-girlfriend, Gabbi – including the victim’s best friend, Jenna. As detective Lindy D’Arnaud and her partner Boggs search for a motive, they begin to wonder if this is a case of jealous violence or something much deeper. In Lindy's personal life, things aren’t much clearer. When Lindy’s wife’s ex-boyfriend–and sperm donor to their baby–decides to move back to town, she finds herself competing for her wife’s affection.

In this interview, Brandi talks about the Souther Noir genre, the use of different perspectives in her storytelling and her writing style.

How did your work as a writing coach and teacher help with this book?
Teaching actually helps me practice what I preach. For this book, I realized that I was not making the time to work on it, so I set up a few write-in sessions on my campus in the library and invited creative writing students to join me for an hour of uninterrupted writing time. I had to show up and work because there could be students waiting for me. It got me out of my rut.

What is the Southern Noir genre and why was it the one you choose to write in?
Typically noirs take place in cities – the dark and gritty city. Corruption, reputation, aesthetics, cynicism, money: small towns have to deal with this, too. Add to that the mythology of the Good Southern Family. Look at how everyone was intrigued by the Murdaugh case in South Carolina. People want to believe nothing bad happens in small southern towns, but that’s not true. And because these small towns are also hiding big juicy secrets, it makes a fertile ground for story ideas to grow.

Lindy sounds like she’s dealing with a lot in her personal life. How does this factor into the story?
I think Lindy would say she’s fallen under the spell of a pretty girl a time or two. It’s possible her experience makes her project and speculate on theories based on past experiences with women who were dangerously charming.

I like the shifting perspectives you use. How did this become your method of telling the story?
At first, I think I wanted to do a structure somewhat similar to what they did in “Big Little Lies,” where a person’s perception of events is clouded because of what they perceive as a slight or some imaginary adversary. And I remember a writing instructor telling me once to make sure I leave room for fun: to always keep something in my story that does nothing but bring me joy. And it was just too much fun to write in the voices of these women.

Did this story get planned out or was it more “seat of the pants” style?
Oh no. I’m a plotter. But I don’t follow any specific outline. I like to know where I’m going in a story. When I get started on a new idea, I open a Word doc and make a bullet point list of everything that needs to happen for the story to work. It’s more of a flexible list than anything else, but it suits me.

Citywide Bytes-Mark Femino talks 30 years of music

In our most recent episode of the live show Citywide Bytes, I’m joined by Mark Femino, and if you’re in the Boston music scene, that’s a name you likely know. 

Mark’s been a professional musician, performer, and teacher for nearly 30 years and actively toured in the mid-90s with the jam band, Blind Man’s Sun.

Today, Mark is a seasoned musician and, in this interview, we talk all about the path he took to get here, including the recent release of his single, “Damn Girl,” a really interesting take on a breakup song. 

Mark also has a new acoustic album called “These Are The Moments,” and he shares some of the stories he’s captured in these eight songs. We also get a couple live songs!

Following this interview is the new single, “Damn Girl,” in its entirety.

Jennifer Tefft talks new music, old venues, and working with the best

If you’re part of the Boston music scene, then the name Jennifer Tefft likely rings a bell. If not, you’ve got some listening to do!

In this episode, Curtis and I talk with Jenn about the recent release of the acoustic version of “Going Out,” all about escaping for a night on the town. We talk about its sound and what the full band version will be like. She’s got another single, “Love & War,” and goes into what we can expect from that. Part of the process included working with musical heavyweights Munk Duane at Bad Stella Studios and Hans DeKline, a Grammy winning Los Angeles mastering engineer.

Jenn has been part of the Boston scene for some time and we talk about her fave venues, both past and present. We look at the state of the scene and get her take on all the recent changes. Jenn also share some stories from her time as a music teacher and the lessons she works to impart.

We kick off the show with an excerpt from “Love & War,” and end the show with the full “Going Out.”

A love song for biology

In this episode I'm joined by author David Parrish for his new book “The Gyroscope of Life,” available through Pocahontas Press. He describes the book as a love song to biology, but for those of us less science-savvy (like yours truly), it's broken down for your reading enjoyment. It goes deep into the history of biology, and David touches on a lot of related subjects, such humanity and our impact on the planet, and the roles of genders and how in the plan and animal world, it's less of a “either/or” and more of a spectrum.