8 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
On R.A.C.E. Day, teach Murder, she wrote:
your dog new tricks
Mystery author reads,
ASTORIA — Classy Ca-
nines 4-H Club is holding
its annual public-partici-
pation Dog Recreational
Agility CGC Event (or Dog
R.A.C.E.) Saturday, Nov.
18, at the Clatsop Coun-
ty Fairgrounds & Expo
Center.
The event focuses on
giving dogs and their
owners a chance to try
beginning-level dog agility.
There will also be an op-
portunity for participants
to test for the American
Kennel Club Canine Good
Citizen (AKC-CGC) certifi-
cation 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The day starts with a
mandatory free registration
and orientation 8 to 8:30
a.m., followed by a free
“Introduction to Jumpers
with Weaves” workshop.
Participants will then
have an opportunity to
compete in a “Jumpers with
Weaves Fun Run Competi-
tion” for $3 each.
Next will be a free
“Introduction to Agility
Contacts” workshop fol-
lowed by an “Agility Touch
‘n’ Go (Contacts) Fun
Run Competition” for $3
each.
The afternoon will
conclude with a “Standard
Agility Fun Run Competi-
tion” for $3 each. No previ-
ous experience is needed as
long as you are willing to
teaches workshop
COURTESY SALLY FREEMAN
have fun working with your
dog and follow the safety
instructions. Participants
are asked to help put the
equipment away at the end
of the day.
The competitions will
feature unique ribbons for
the top placements. A spec-
tacular prize drawing and
dog-themed vendors will
also be on-site. Proceeds
will be donated to a local
veterinary charity fund.
Participants should
bring a dog, a kennel/crate,
a non-tightening collar
or harness, a 6-foot leash
and many tiny soft treats,
such as quarter-inch cheese
cubes, a water bowl and
plastic clean-up bags.
The arena is generally
very cold in the morning,
so dress in layers and wear
shoes to run in.
Spectators are welcome
to watch the dogs learn
to navigate the obstacle
courses.
For more information or
to donate to the drawing,
contact Sally Freeman at
youngsriver@yahoo.com or
503-325-7161, or text 503-
308-2372.
Have a very craft-y Christmas on the Willapa
SOUTH BEND, WASH. — The
Willapa Country Christmas
Craft Fair, hosted by the
Willapa Harbor Chamber
of Commerce, will be held
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday,
Nov. 18, at the South Bend
Community Center (South
Bend, Washington 98586).
Local artists and
vendors will be on hand
offering their best products
for your Christmas shop-
ping.
Local photographer
Jessie Lee will be accompa-
nied by Santa Claus to take
photos with little ones.
MANZANITA — Author
Ingrid Thoft will read from
her latest book, “Duplicity,”
at the Hoffman Center for the
Arts in Manzanita 7 p.m. Sat-
urday, Nov. 18. Admission is
$7. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Following Thoft’s evening
reading and Q-and-A, the
center will hold its open
mic, where up to nine local
or visiting writers will read
five minutes of their original
work. The suggested (not
required)
theme is
“Mystery
and Murder.”
In addi-
tion, Thoft
will teach a
workshop,
“Mastering
Ingrid Thoft
Murder,” 10
a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Want to demystify the
process of writing a mystery?
We’ll examine the guts of
the modern mystery and help
you make progress on your
idea or manuscript. How do
you craft a suspenseful plot?
Create memorable charac-
ters? Make it realistic? Write
from the viewpoint of an
assassin? Knock your readers
dead? Join Ingrid and find
out!
The workshop will be
held at the Hoffman Center.
Tuition is $40. Register at
hoffmanblog.org/regis-
ter-for-workshops.
Life of P.I.
FACEBOOK.COM
“Duplicity” is the fourth
in Thoft’s series with Bos-
ton-based P.I. Fina Ludlow.
Thoft’s first book, “Loyal-
ty,” sold to rave reviews. Her
second in the series, “Brutali-
ty,” was awarded the Shamus
Award for best P.I. novel by
PHOTOS COURTESY HOFFMAN CENTER FOR THE ARTS
the Private Eye Writers of
America. The Fina Ludlow
books are now “in devel-
opment” for a TV series on
ABC. The Boston-based in-
vestigator has been compared
to V.I. Warshawski, Kinsey
Milhone, even Lisbeth
Salander.
As Kirkus wrote, “Thoft
is an entertaining storyteller,
and her quirky protagonist’s
the equal of any male gum-
shoe.”
Thoft was born in Boston
and is a graduate of Welles-
ley College. Though she
always wanted to be an au-
thor, her first real-life job was
at a radio station in coastal
Massachusetts, ripping wires
and running the board for
a Sunday talk show. She’s
worked in human resources
at Harvard, and did a stint
with an interactive software
company.
She wrote two novels
about an amateur sleuth
that did not sell. When she
decided an amateur sleuth
character led to limitations,
she decided to focus on a
professional Private Inves-
tigator instead. To create a
believable P.I. character, she
enrolled in the Private Inves-
tigation certificate program
at the University of Wash-
ington. Thoft lives in Seattle
with her husband.
This event is part of the
Manzanita Writers’ Series,
a program of the Hoffman
Center for the Arts (594 La-
neda Ave.). More information
is available at hoffmanblog.
org, or contact Kathie High-
tower at kathiejhightower@
gmail.com.