DESTREHAN — The Friends of the St. Charles Library are sponsoring three author events next week in celebration of National Friends of Libraries Week. All will take place at the East Regional Library, 160 West Campus Drive in Destrehan.

 

Mystery writer Lori Rader-Day will host an interactive two-hour mystery-writing workshop at 6 p.m. Oct. 19. Attendees will get tips for creating villains and crimes, how to build suspense into their stories and how to leave clues that will keep readers turning pages.

She will also host an author talk at 6 p.m. Oct. 20.

Rader-Day is the author of two novels. Her debut mystery, “The Black Hour,” received glowing reviews and was a finalist for the Mary Higgins Clark Award. Her second novel, “Little Pretty Things,” was published in July. Her short stories have appeared in numerous magazines, including Ellery Queen and Good Housekeeping.

New Orleans author Laura Lane McNeal will meet with the library’s book discussion group at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 21 to talk about her debut novel, “Dollbaby.” Everyone is invited to meet the author and learn more about how the novel came into being.

Dollbaby is a big-hearted coming-of-age debut set in Civil Rights-era New Orleans. Told through the eyes of a young girl learning to understand race for the first time, Dollbaby is a love letter to New Orleans.

McNeal grew up in New Orleans. In 2005, when the devastation of Hurricane Katrina forced her to rebuild her life, she seized the opportunity to fulfill her lifetime dream of becoming a writer.

The Friends of the St. Charles Library will also hold a book sale from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 23 at the Book Nook, located next to the Hahnville Branch Library, 14996 River Road. Hardback books, paperbacks, audiobooks, DVDs and CDs will be sold for 25 cents to $1.