November/December 2009 Issue of The Sleuth

Our November/December 2009 (20th) issue is ready to mail out. Check out the cover above and preview the contents below. Order this issue or subscribe now!

Calling All Sleuths: Editor's Note By Jennifer Fisher

The Clue Conundrum: Ski Jump Trivia

Behind the Scenes of the Secret of the Forgotten City with Nancy S. Axelrad By Jennifer Fisher

2010 Nancy Drew & Hardy Boys Web Con: Jan 25-31

Illustrated by Rudy Nappi By Dawn Allen

Fans Interview Rudy Nappi By Dawn Allen

The Nancy Drew Crookbook Part VIII By Caroline Stellings

Highlights of the UCSD Nancy Drew Exhibit By Jennifer Fisher

Nancy Drew: A Canadian Perspective - Happy Birthday, Nancy Review By Anthony Fournier

Deconstructing The Digests - Debunking The Misconceptions Surrounding The Nancy Drew Paperbacks #86 - The Mystery of Misty Canyon By Todd H. Latoski

Sleuths Janet & Carol's Scouting Trip By Carol Dierksen

Crazy Eights with Michael G. Cornelius - A Taste of Danger By Michael G. Cornelius

Nancy Drew News

My Go-Away Nancy Drew Party By Gina Travis

Drewggle: Nancy Drew & Karate By Amriel Simpson

Nancy Drew's iPod By Pamela J. Horack

The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries: A Look Back at TV's First Nancy Drew: Episode 2.5 (19) - The Mystery of the Hollywood Phantom Part II By Todd H. Latoski

Drew Interview: Sisters, Schoolgirls and Sleuths Author Carolyn Carpan Interviewed by Janet DeVries

Nancy Drew's Survival Guide: Sleuth Lesson #20

The Scoop on Upcoming Issues, Clue Conundrum Answers

Classic Nancy Drew Book Illustrations Series #8: Nancy's Mysterious Letter

Jenn:)

Register for the 2010 Nancy Drew & Hardy Boys Web Con

Calling All Sleuths! We're kicking off Nancy Drew's 80th anniversary with a spiffy Web Con of Super Sleuth proportions--and including the Hardy Boys too this coming January!

Dates: 7 days - Jan. 25 - Jan. 31, 2010

Location: http://www.nancydrewsleuth.com/2010webcon.html

Registration Cost: $20.00 - Includes access to 7 days of Web Con activities, a daily entry into our door prizes for neat Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys prizes plus a neat booklet put together in the style of "The Sleuth" with glossy color covers featuring some of the submissions from the Web Con and some of your commentary, to be put together and mailed out to all registrants late Feb. 2010.

The Web Con will be organized into 7 daily portions, accessible and archived each day in a special section of my website. The Web Con will be set up like a Blog with postings each day on a variety of topics related to Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys.

Some of our contributors besides myself include: James Keeline, Todd H. Latoski, Jennifer White, Jim McNamara, Tony Carpentieri--co-author of Hardy & Hardy Investigations, Mark Connolly--author of The Hardy Boys Mysteries, 1927-1979, A Cultural and Literary History, Geoff Lapin, Lee Temares, Austin Johnson, Michael G. Cornelius--co-editor of Nancy Drew and Her Sister Sleuths, artist Laura Ruby, Dean Burcham, Lea Fox, Vicki Broadhurst, Yellowback Library Editor Gil O'Gara, Penny Warner--author of The Official Nancy Drew Handbook, Janet DeVries, Carol Dierksen, Spencer and Pam Tandy--grand-children of Russell H. Tandy, and Carolyn Carpan--author of Sisters, Schoolgirls, and Sleuths: Girls' Series Books in America. More to be announced in January.

To register, you may send a Pay Pal (Pay Pal id: nancydrewsleuth@aol.com), request a Pay Pal invoice from me, use the "subscribe" button at the website, or send a check/money order to me at:

Jennifer Fisher
P.O. Box 128
Higley, AZ 85236-0128

Jenn:)

365 Days of Nancy Drew Blog Jan-Dec 2010 Sign up!

Hi Everyone,

I'm creating a private Nancy Drew Blog entitled: 365 Days of Nancy Drew, as a Blog Party to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Nancy Drew next year!

There will be postings every day on all kinds of topics from fun facts, trivia, quotes, insights from the history behind the series, book and character discussions, craft projects, guest Bloggers, news and scoops, 80th anniversary items, giveaways and much more! It's like your own page-a-day calendar but more in-depth and insightful.

Members of the Blog can chat in the comments with each other and ask questions for myself and guest Bloggers to answer.

To sign up and view more details click here.

The Blog begins Jan 1, 2010 - postings every day. Everything is archived and you can join at anytime. Once you sign up, you'll be e-mailed an invitation to join the private Blog. Cost is just 12.00 - which is 1.00 per month averaged. I take checks/money orders and Pay Pal--there's a subscribe button right at the website link above to make it easier. The exact details on how to join are on the website link above.

Jenn:)

Sale: Nancy Drew Shop at Cafe Press

Check out the Nancy Drew Shop at Cafe Press!

There's a sale at Cafe Press right now--no code needed to get the discount--of 25% off ornaments and cards through Friday, November 6. Check out the neat Nancy Drew ornaments/cards we have:

http://www.cafepress.com/nancydrewshop

Jenn:)

Nancy Drew Old Attic Halloween Party & Trick or Treats

Weeks of planning and designing=one fun Nancy Drew Halloween party! The local AZ Sleuths wanted to see my Nancy Drew collection, so we decided to have a Halloween party on Friday, October 30. The theme was the 21st Nancy Drew book, The Secret in the Old Attic. I tried to recreate the attic on the front porch complete with items mentioned from the book: trunk, wardrobe with skeleton, cobwebs, spiders, old bottles, sheet music, an old table, hat boxes, a Currier & Ives print and so forth. The Nancy Drew silhouette is featured prominently in the front window.

Inside in the dining room, we had tables set up with vintage Halloween party collectibles and lots of goodies. Take a moment to weed through all the photos from our party from the set up of the porch to the end result and the party festivities plus my Old Attic goodies I gave out the next evening on Halloween to all the trick or treaters!

Spooky Spiders & Webbing in front side window

Spiders light the way on this outside light

It began with a wardrobe - made from 2 cardboard
boxes which were painted brown

Nancy Drew silhouette pumpkin

Silhouette pumpkins by the front door

Poster of Old Attic - Tandy illustration

Skeleton in the Wardrobe & Lots of Spider Webs!

The Attic is Taking Shape with Spooky Footprints!

Might there be a secret behind the wardrobe?

Maybe something hidden in the wardrobe?

Footprints from Martha Stewart Crafts Line, sold here

Old Attic Nappi Cover Poster to set the theme

An old suitcase doubles for the trunk and a candle nearby

Battery operated old-time candle found at Michaels, good for photo op

Lots of sheet music, part of our party game

The Secret in the Old Attic Party Banner

Crepe Streamers, Orange Lanterns, and Vintage Collectibles

Group Photo in front of the collection!

Everyone checking out the collection spanning nearly 80 years!

Treats

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Nancy Drew Old Attic Picks

Yum!

Cream Cheese Peanut Butter Ball & Ginger/Chocolate Cookies

Treats & Appetizers

Awaiting Dinner: Lasagna, Parmesan Chicken, & Salads

Festive Tables Set

Old Attic Treat Boxes for Each Guest

Featuring spider web boxes and ribbons, Old Attic Sticker, & Spider

Goodies: Candy, Googly Eye Rings, Stretch Skeletons, & Keychains

Opening the treat boxes!

Old Attic mystery hunt: Letters on spiders
unscrambled to spell W A R D R O B E

Mini Old Attic books to be found in wardrobe as prizes

Spiders with letters on sheet music -
we hunted for sheet music like Nancy in the book!

Our Nancy Drew Halloween Treat Bag Exchange!

Pumpkin Basket with book covers and lots of ribbons and treats!

Neat Old Attic bag

Another Old Attic bag with image above and silhouette below:

Iron On Transfer Bag with treats!

Neat Mysterious Letter Collage Frame!

Dede, Gail, and Judy brought me this neat
Halloween/Nancy Drew decorated pail shown above and below:

HALLOWEEN NIGHT TREATS:

I made nearly 200 goody bags for the kids featuring Nancy Drew & the Hardy Boys stickers - And ran out of them! Normally we have around 130 to 150 kids, this year over 200! WOW! Or as George would say, HYPERS!

Little Kids got candy and play-doh plus a bookmark for the girls!

Older kids got candy, spiders, stretchy skeletons, googly eye rings,
and girls got bookmarks. Hardy Boys Skull Mountain sticker pictured above

Inexpensive Jack O' Lantern buckets lit up with battery
operated tea-lights make the perfect lanterns to line your walkway!

Nancy Drew silhouette hurricane next to Old Attic poster

Just before dark, the scene becomes more spooky!

This Halloween was lots of fun and using the Old Attic theme was easy to do. Maybe this will inspire you to decorate your homes next year with a Nancy Drew theme! The kids squealed and were delighted with the theme and the goody bags. When I was a kid, I loved getting the treat sacks, so I like to do that for the kids at Halloween!

Jenn:)