This is something I am dealing with right now, and I know some of my fellow mama writers can relate. Writing a book is hard enough when you don’t have any distractions. But, how are you supposed to write when you’ve got monkeys, oh, I mean children, climbing the walls around you?
Here are 6 tips to help you overcome distractions and get your book written despite being a busy mom:
#1 As much as you are enjoying the extra sleep, set your alarm for a regular time each morning. Let your children sleep in while you work on your book.
#2 Schedule time each day where you can barricade yourself in your room and write for half an hour. It may be a struggle at first, but if you keep up with it the children will learn the routine. If Pavlov could train animals using conditioned reflex then your children can learn to give you space to work when needed. It’s not easy and it takes some time, but it depends on you!
#3 Give yourself some tough love. Create a daily discipline and make yourself stick to it. Don’t give yourself an excuse to back out or put off your writing time. Remember you can’t pour from an empty cup. Many mothers fall into the trap of giving of themselves to the point of their own detriment. We must remember that doing something for ourselves is necessary. You have to have something in your cup before you can pour out of it. If writing brings you joy, then you must write.
#4 Find yourself an accountability partner. This can be a friend that will keep you in check, it can be a fellow writer or even an author coach. The important thing is to find someone who will keep you on your toes. Don’t find someone who will accept all of your excuses. Find someone who cares enough to see through the B.S. and call you on it in a gentle but firm way. I’m not talking about finding a bully here either. You can take this to opposite extremes.
#5 Set a deadline. While it’s easy to procrastinate, if you set yourself a hard deadline you will find you’ll reach your goals. I happen to find it motivating to set my deadlines publicly, but other people find it so overwhelming that they don’t follow through. Either way, you must find what works for you and set those deadlines!
#6. Remember the reason why you wanted this in the first place. I’ve written many posts and made several videos about the power of finding your purpose. Basically, if you don’t have a strong enough reason for writing your book it will be easier to put it off. In my experience as an author coach, I work on mindset more than mechanics. I find the mindset to be the determining factor in a writer’s success. I have met so many grammar nazis and English majors that have never published a book, much less make six figures. Why? It doesn’t come down to education and ability. It comes down to mindset. Find your why and the way will follow. I think that was a quote but I’m not sure who came up with it first.
I hope these tips will help you finish your book. I know you are capable of becoming a published author. Now get back to writing!!
So many writers I’ve met over the years struggle with one major problem. They have written their heart and soul into a book and now no one will buy it. It’s a heart-wrenching struggle that I have been through myself. Now, as an author coach, I bring this question up to anyone who is starting on this journey. I want you to start your journey in a better place than I found myself 10 years ago.
I had written my book and taken years to do so. I spent another couple of years begging and pleading for it to be published. I was traditionally published and then I was left alone to drown in the storm of publishing and marketing. I had no idea what I was doing and I floundered rather quickly. You see a big publishing guru once said, “when your book is finished and published, your work is only 5% complete.” That’s right. Marketing your book takes 95% of your effort. And if you’re not willing to do this, then continue writing as a hobby.
I know that sounds harsh, but it’s the truth and sometimes the truth hurts especially for writers. This is another question I ask a new writer.
Does your book have a market?
You see people are under the assumption that you get paid for time and you get paid for products that you sell. This is not true. You do not get paid for time or you would get paid to sit and do nothing. You do not get paid for selling products or you wouldn’t have to do anything. The product would automatically sell itself and money would end up in your pocket.
I want you to realize that you get paid for bringing value to the marketplace. Your book needs to bring value to the potential reader. If the reader cannot see this potential value, they will not purchase the book even if it were available to 10 million people tomorrow.
People buy perception. People buy what they think they will get out of a product. Does your product aka your book, bring value to your potential reader?
How can a book bring value to a person you might ask. Here are a few examples. Your book can bring entertainment value to those who are looking to escape the realities of life. J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter are a perfect example. She has created an entire alternate reality around fantasy fiction. Your book may also inspire people. Perhaps your writing will inspire people to better themselves to lose weight, to grow spiritually, or perhaps to inspire them to reach for their dreams
The other way a book can provide value is to educate. Perhaps your work will teach someone how to bake a cake as good as Grandma’s. Maybe it will teach them how to care for themselves or care for their family. Or it could help the reader grow with a bit of wisdom and personal development.
Whatever the value may be a reader must see the potential value before they purchase your book. Now you might say, how is this book valuable to my mother who buys every book I write? Well, she values the relationship she has with you whether she values the book or not. So, when you ask your friends and family to buy from you whether you are selling cosmetics or you’re selling your book they usually buy from you not because they see value in the product but they see value in their relationship with you and they want to support you.
Whatever the case may be, when creating your book you need to ask yourself is there a market for this book? Is there a group of people that would benefit from this book? If the answer is “no,” then perhaps you should write something else.
Say you want to write a book of haiku poems. Ask yourself this. Is there a market for books of haiku poems? Then research that market. If there is a market for haiku poems, I am not aware of it. It would be a very niche market.
You have to find the target audience for haiku readers and market directly to them. I’m not saying it’s impossible to write whatever you want. But, depending on what you call success you need to have these things in mind before you start.
Now if your idea of success, is to have your book published and to give it to friends and family or to sell it at a local library at an author event, then so be it. Do it. Go for it. If your idea of success is broader in scope and nature then perhaps you need to study the market and ask yourself if there is a market for your book.
I started out writing a book and found out the hard way that there was a market for my book 10 years ago but there wasn’t when my book was published. I grew up reading a certain genre of book, so my first book fit perfectly in that genre. Unfortunately by the time I was an adult publishing my work, that genre was almost dead. You need to keep this in mind when you write.
If you want to write for the sake of writing, then, by all means, write what you please. But if you are wanting to find a level of financial success in your writing career then I suggest you write for the market.
Want all of Synova’s Insider Secrets? Check out her book!
Can a local writer build a big enough audience to attract Hollywood? I did.
Can you publish independently and build a large platform that attracts the attention of a traditional publishing house? I did.
Can an indie author make six figures a year? Yes!
This go-to guide will show you how I built a business so large that a publishing house came to me and offered to buy reprint rights to three of my books. I got the chance to tell them “no” for one of the books. I made too much money.
Have you ever been able to send a rejection letter to a publishing house? It’s a lot of fun. Trust me.
“Grab them by the heart and pull them towards you” – Synova
Back in the days before Amazon became a publishing house, there were these shadowy figures in our society called gatekeepers. These unnamed individuals were in charge of sorting through thousands of manuscripts submitted by hopeful writers. Each publishing house had these employees, and on their desks were piles of documents known as the slush pile. How could an inspiring writer possibly stand out from the crowd?
The gatekeeper would read the title of the manuscript and then read the first paragraph. If nothing enticed him, the manuscript would be thrown in the trash. I know it sounds cruel, but that’s the way it worked back then. Although Indie publishing has done away with the gatekeepers, it also has flooded the market with books.
Now an author must hook the reader directly. You do that with a beautiful book cover, a compelling title, and an intriguing back cover summary. Visualize this.
You’re at a book signing table in a busy bookstore. What will draw a reader to you? A nice table display, and then what? Your book cover is the next thing that draws the eye. After the cover, they read the title, the back cover summary, and finally, the first paragraph. The reader has just completed the very same cycle as the gatekeeper.
How do you make sure the reader buys your book? While the answer to that varies with in-person sales and online sales, there are some basic principles to ensure your success.
First, you must have a beautiful cover. Beyond that, you must hook the reader. Start this process with an intriguing title and follow it up with a compelling back cover summary and an incredible first paragraph.
How?
First, you must remember that the reader does not buy a book. I know that sounds strange. But, you must realize that a reader buys the emotional connection to the book. Jim Brown makes it very clear in one of his many speeches. You do not get paid for the time. You do not get paid for products, aka books. You get paid for bringing value to the marketplace.
This concept also applies to You’re writing business. You do not get paid for books, e-books, podcasts, etc. You get paid for bringing value to your readers. The reader will buy your book when they perceive it has value to them personally. That value may be entertainment education or inspiration.
So how does all of this help you sell more books? Think about it this way. When you are writing the back cover summary of your book, you want it to be enticing you want it to bring value. You also want it to compel the reader to buy the book.
When writing nonfiction, I like to include a startling statistic or a startling quote to the very beginning of my back cover summary. For fiction, you want to entice the reader with a bit of action and a bit of conflict.
Keep this in mind when writing your manuscript. You do not have to start at the beginning. You need to start at the point of chaos. When you start with a little bit of drama it entices the reader to keep going a lot of books will begin with a little bit of drama then they will cut it off with a cliffhanger, and then they will start at the beginning of the book then they will build back up to that crescendo of chaos.
I always start my fiction books with a little bit of action. This process compels the reader to continue reading.
When trying to entice a reader to pick up your book and to pay for your book, you want to really understand your target audience. What is your perfect reader looking for in your genre? What are some trending topics? The better you know your reader, the better you will be able to provide the value that they are seeking.
Now that you know what your reader wants to serve it to them on a silver platter of emotion. Readers buy an emotional connection. So literally use your words to reach into their chest and pull their heart towards you. That kind of hook will not only give you a book sale. It will give you a reader for life, and it will build a connection with that person, and you will have a true fan for the lifetime of your writing career.
This blog post is a part of a series of stories about the Dixie Mafia. Make sure to subscribe to Synova’s True Crime Newsletter so you don’t miss out on any of the stories.
According to an article on the FBI’s website, in 1983, federal authorities designated the entire Harrison County Sherriff’s office as a criminal enterprise. Sheriff Leroy Hobbs was hand in hand with the Dixie Mafia. In 1987, a prominent judge and his wife were murdered in their home and some of the local corruption would be exposed. Now 30 years later the rest of this story will be told. Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife Margret were murdered in their home on the evening of September 14, 1987. The official report states that Pete Halat and Charles Lager “discovered” the bodies on the morning of September 16th. The popular tv show “The FBI Files” even states this as fact. This, however, is merely another coverup perpetrated by this group of people. One lone woman knew the truth for decades and now everyone will know. Pete Halat had been to the house the day before with one honest cop bound by a gambling addiction and his name is Lt. Dan Anderson.
Can someone be honest and be a gambler? Yes. Can someone be bound by an addiction to gambling? Of course. We see this every day. Is it too far-fetched to assume this man could be forced into silence because of his addiction? What if his son had already died of suspicious circumstances? I will let you ponder those questions as I relate to you the story of September 15, 1987.
Lt. Dan Anderson worked as a court bailiff for Judge Vincent Sherry and considered him a friend. On the morning of September 15th, Anderson arrived early to the courthouse to get the building ready for the day’s legal wranglings. He turned on all the lights and adjusted the thermostat and made the coffee. Strangely, the judge never arrived. Judge Sherry hadn’t missed one court date in his entire career. As the clocked ticked past his first appointment his bailiff began to worry. Anderson made a phone call to the judge’s house but there wasn’t any answer. Finally, Anderson called the judge’s legal partner Pete Halat and asked if the judge happened to be in the office with him. The answer was negative. Concerned, Anderson told Halat that he wasn’t waiting any longer. He was going to drive over to the judge’s house and see what was going on. Halat immediately told the bailiff that he would meet him at the judge’s house.
Together they approached the door of the house and Dan Anderson noticed it was partially opened. He called out “Sherry,” a nickname for the judge and there wasn’t a response. Anderson carefully pushed open the door and found the body of the 58-year-old man lying on the floor. Continuing through the house, Anderson found the body of Mrs. Margret Sherry in the bedroom.
Struggling to keep his emotions in check, Dan Anderson told Pete Halat what he found. This is where the case gets even stranger. Instead of calling for backup, Pete Halat sends the bailiff home claiming that he would handle the situation. Supposedly, he didn’t want the media to find out about this until he could get the police on site and figure out what happened to the judge.
Lt. Anderson returns home distraught after seeing the corpses of his friends. Before he could get himself together, his daughter Phyllis happened to call. On this rare occasion, Dan Anderson poured out his emotional story to his daughter giving details of the crime scene. Phyllis listened and tried to console her father and promised to call and check on him later that evening. When evening came, her father was back to his tight-lipped self and refused to speak of it again. Phyllis had no way of knowing that her father was being forced into silence. She assumed it was his quiet way of dealing with trauma.
The next day Pete Halat makes a big deal of the judge being late for court and persuades his junior law partner, Charles Lager into driving out the judge’s house with him. This is where the “official” report begins. Halat barely steps into the house and steps back out onto the porch to report the two were dead. Later in trial Lager would confess that Halat didn’t seem shocked by their death. Also, he stated that Halat didn’t go all the way into the back of the house where Margret’s body lay. How did he know they were both dead? Well, you and I know the truth.
An investigation was launched and eventually, a partial truth came out. Pete Halat and a few others had been in league with the infamous Kirksey Nix, Jr on a big money-making scam. The FBI labeled it “The Lonely Hearts” scam. Basically, Nix had found a way to con hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the local gay community. He would post pictures of good-looking men in the paper along with a tear-jerking ad. This poor handsome gay man was looking for love, was being wrongfully accused, and needed money to help with his legal fees. Trying to help out, these victims would send in their money and their love letters. Then the criminal scumbags would turn around and blackmail these good-hearted men. In the 1980’s most of these men weren’t open about their sexuality and Nix found it easy to blackmail them. By September they were raking in six figures. This is when Halat begins to get greedy. Why did he have to put all the money back in a safe deposit box for Nix? Instead, he transferred $100,000 to a safe deposit box he shared with Judge Sherry. When Nix found out about the theft, Halat blames it on the judge. Nix hires a hitman to kill the couple and Halat wins all the way around. You see, Halat wanted to run for mayor and one of his biggest political rivals was Margret Sherry. Now Halat had the money, the Sherrys were gone, and two years after their death he becomes the mayor.
The FBI investigators had to keep the case close to the chest for fear of tipping off the corrupt mayor, but in October 1996 Halat’s charade was over when he was arrested and tried for his involvement in the murder of Judge Sherry. Nix and the hitman would get life in prison, but Halat only received 18 years.
Phyllis knew about the case, but her father tried to keep her from paying too much attention to the news. Living two states away in Georgia, it was easy to get distracted by her own life and not follow the case too closely. It would take a chance meeting in a restaurant before Phyllis would get her father to speak of the case again.
Fast forward to early 1990. Phyllis and her husband were having dinner when she overheard the people behind her say something about the Sherry murders. Phyllis being a good ‘ole southern gal has never met a stranger and can talk to anyone. She turns around and innocently asks the man if he were talking about the murder of Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife Margret. To her surprise, the man glared at her and without saying a word he stood up with his woman and left the restaurant. Phyllis was taken aback and glanced at the table and noticed they hadn’t even eaten their dinner. When she returned home she phoned her dad and told him about the strange encounter.
Dan exploded on the phone demanding to know what the man looked like. Phyllis described him not understanding her father’s outburst.
“That was John Ransom. He’s the S.O.B. who killed Sherry and Margret.” Dan also told of Pete Halat’s involvement and then demanded that she never speak of this case to anyone again.
I wish I could say that this is the end of this story, but we have one more murder to cover next week. Lt. Dan Anderson would be killed. Guess what? His death was ruled suicide. Surely, by this point in this story, you won’t believe that for a moment. Below I have listed a few links to more information about the case of Judge Sherry and his wife.
EACH WEEK SYNOVA HIGHLIGHTS OBSCURE COLD CASES ON HER BLOG AS A VICTIMS’ ADVOCATE WITH MISSOURI MISSING ORGANIZATION. SHE NEVER CHARGES FOR HER SERVICES. IF YOU’D LIKE TO SUPPORT HER IN THIS WORTHY CAUSE, PLEASE CHECK OUT THE AFFILIATE LINKS ON THIS PAGE. BY PURCHASING ONE OF HER BOOKS, OR USING THESE LINKS YOU WILL BE SUPPORTING SYNOVA’S WORK ON COLD CASES AND WILL ENSURE HER ABILITY TO CONTINUE TO GIVE A VOICE TO THE VICTIM’S FAMILY.
If you enjoy this content don’t forget to sign up for Synova’s Weekly True Crime Newsletter. You will receive exclusive content directly in your inbox. As a gift for joining you will also receive the Grim Justice ebook free.
Deep in the heart of Dixie lies a hidden evil. It’s tentacles stretch from state to state, from county to county. The Dixie Mafia has produced infamous outlaws, bank robbers, and murderers. The story contains tidbits from each of their lives and even includes the story of a famous sheriff, but this book is not about them.
Silenced by the Dixie Mafia is about a big sister who has fought for answers for over five decades. It’s about a father who was an ex-alcoholic turned into a gambling addict. A father’s decisions would lead to the death of his disabled son and eventually lead to his own demise. Now left alone to find answers and make sense of the chaos is a brave little southern belle named Phyllis.
Tying back to the ambush of Sheriff Buford Pusser on August 12, 1967, this story will change history as we know it. The world knew nothing about the Dixie Mafia until the murders of Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife Margaret in 1987. This public assassination brought this band of ruthless criminals into view, but the truth was still hidden until the death of the Andersons.
Kansas City is in the spotlight this week with a look at Tom J. Pendergast. When Pendergast was born on July 22, 1872, he was the youngest in a family of nine children. His parents were Irish immigrants and worked hard to provide for their large family.
Controversy surrounds his educational background, and despite claims of a college career, it is believed he only held a sixth-grade education. Despite this detriment, he learned much about politics and other civic duties from his older brother, James, who owned a tavern by the Missouri River. James held the position of alderman on the city council in Kansas City, and when he retired, Tom was named his successor.
Tom was married and had three children. He was active in his faith, which included being a Knight of Columbus in the Catholic Church. With this new position, he gained control of the city and began his reign of corruption. The tavern he owned with his brother enabled him to mingle with the underworld. Guns, prostitutes, gambling, and liquor all became commodities in his rise to power. Within these influential groups, politics also became fair game. Voter fraud and intimidation were used to ensure certain politicians were elected. Under these conditions, Tom and his brother were able to manipulate the system by providing care in the form of food and money to needy families in the area. These charitable contributions made them very powerful with voters and in political circles.
James died in 1911, and Tom married the same year. He and his wife Caroline had three children. His family life did not preclude him from corruption, however. He appointed Henry McElroy to City Manager, and this bolstered his political power. Throughout the next few years, Pendergast rose to the top of a very organized criminal organization. Among these shady individuals was Johnny Lazia, an Italian American with connections, whose reputation for kidnapping was known. Pendergast’s association with Lazia gave him infinite power in the mob world. In return, he gave Lazia the task of hiring police, which resulted in unchecked gambling and bootlegged liquor sales. By 1927, the city was called “Tom’s Town.”
During this same time, Pendergast began to clean up his image. Portraying himself as a religious family man, he became friendly with Harry S. Truman. The Pendergast party heavily influenced the election of Franklin Roosevelt, who conveniently did not rally to investigate such corrupt enterprises. Things began to change, however, in 1934. It was found that several voter ballots were fraudulent, and many people were threatened and murdered at voting polls.
By 1936, things were coming to an end for Pendergast and his powerful posse. He suffered a heart attack and seemed to take stock of his losses. He realized he was close to being prosecuted and began to defend himself by using his health as an excuse. In truth, this health crisis did nothing to squelch Pendergast’s love of gambling. He had a special wire installed in his office, which allowed him to gamble freely from afar. He lost hundreds of thousands in the process, bringing his financial and political world to a standstill.
In January of 1939, a grand jury was held, which resulted in an investigation of the “Pendergast Machine.” During this time, his bookkeeper Edward Schneider was found dead in what was deemed a “suicide.” Schneider had already rolled on him, however, and Pendergast was indicted on tax evasion. He was sentenced to fifteen months but served only twelve. After his release, Pendergast was a social outcast. After his wife, Carolyn, left him, his health deteriorated. After several heart attacks, he passed away from heart failure on January 26, 1945. He was seventy-two years old.
Pendergast’s corrupt politics began to fade after his death. However, much of what he built still stands. Many of his concrete business endeavors created the infrastructure seen in Kansas City today.
THIS LIST OF LINKS IS NOT AN ALL-ENCOMPASSING SOURCE CITING. ALL OF THE INFORMATION USED IN THIS ARTICLE CAN BE EASILY FOUND ONLINE. LINKS BELOW WERE USED AS SOURCES AND ARE RECOMMENDED READING FOR SYNOVA’S READERS. SYNOVA STRIVES TO CITE ALL THE SOURCES USED DURING HER CASE STUDY, BUT OCCASIONALLY A SOURCE MAY BE MISSED BY MISTAKE. IT IS NOT INTENTIONAL, AND NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED.
Synova Ink would like to welcome our newest guest blogger. Karen Reep is a new true crime writer learning to spread her wings on our Mobster Monday posts. Look for more of her writing in the near future.
Support Synova’s Cause:
EACH WEEK SYNOVA HIGHLIGHTS OBSCURE COLD CASES ON HER BLOG AS A VICTIMS’ ADVOCATE WITH MISSOURI MISSING ORGANIZATION. SHE NEVER CHARGES FOR HER SERVICES. IF YOU’D LIKE TO SUPPORT HER IN THIS WORTHY CAUSE, PLEASE CHECK OUT THE AFFILIATE LINKS ON THIS PAGE. BY PURCHASING ONE OF HER BOOKS, OR USING THESE LINKS YOU WILL BE SUPPORTING SYNOVA’S WORK ON COLD CASES AND WILL ENSURE HER ABILITY TO CONTINUE TO GIVE A VOICE TO THE VICTIM’S FAMILY.
If you enjoy this content don’t forget to sign up for Synova’s Weekly True Crime Newsletter. You will receive exclusive content directly in your inbox. As a gift for joining you will also receive the Grim Justice ebook free.
Every successful author has a brand. Do you? J.K. Rowling, John Grisham, and Steven King all have a brand. We all know these authors and their unique style. If someone asks you where to find a well-written fantasy novel, you won’t send them to John Grisham or the king of horror.
Do you have an author brand?
Author branding is a crucial element in your marketing game, and if you are missing it, then you won’t find the same level of success.
Why is Author Branding important?
Branding is about recognition. Think about it this way. If someone asks you where to get a cheap hamburger, where do you send them? McDonald’s. Why? It’s because McDonald’s is known as a place for cheap burgers. You don’t send them to a local steakhouse to find a cheap hamburger. Think about the following words; Amazon, Coca-cola, Nike, Kleenex. Each of those words generates an image in your mind. This instant recognition is what you want to create in the minds of your readers.
Sometimes the brand will take over the product in the marketplace, and you see this example in Kleenex and Bandaid. Both of those are brand names that have become so prevalent that they have overtaken the product. No child asks for a medical adhesive strip when they scrape their knee. They ask for the brand, Bandaid. The same is said with a kleenex. Think about this. What if your author brand could become so defined that it overtook the market in your genre. How incredible would that be?
What is a brand?
A brand is everything your readers perceive you and your company to be. It’s shown in the fonts you use in your advertisement and the color schemes you use for your website. It includes images and logos and most importantly the overarching theme of your business. Don’t worry. I will use myself as an example.
As a writer, I started out writing on a whim. Whatever came to mind, I would write and struggle to get it published. After I finally succeeded in publishing my work, I found no one wanted to buy my unextraordinary book. There was nothing to set me or my book apart from the throngs of other writers.
After I wrote the biography of an ex-gangster from Chicago, I completely rebranded myself as a true-crime writer. Since I was writing about a mafia-style gangster, I slowly adopted a mafioso-style look to my online presence. Then came the obvious branding tool, my fedora. Here’s the story behind the hat.
I had just published “Unorganized Crime” and was heading to a local bookstore for a book signing. On the way, I stopped and picked up Sidney (the ex-gangster), and he handed me a black fedora.
“Here Sis wear this. You’ll look cute in it.”
Those words would change my life and author branding forever. Shrugging my shoulders, I put on the hat. It was way too big and fell into my eyes all day. While at the event, I made a short three-minute video for Facebook, asking people to come out and see us. I thought nothing about the hat.
Two weeks later, I found myself at an author event at this tiny hole-in-the-wall library. I didn’t wear a hat. For the next two hours I had six people ask me where was my hat. It was then I realized the significance. I had accidentally created an author brand and knew I had better stick with it. Now the fedora is incorporated in all my logos and I always wear it in my videos. People look for it at events, and it has taken on a life of its own.
Think about your genre, and how can you create a brand that will set you apart from the crowd? Is there something as simple as a hat that can build your brand? Study the successful authors in your genre and see what they do. Do all of their pictures have a specific look about them? Do they always dress a certain way? What can you do to emulate them?
I have a lot of author friends who dress up as a character out of their books at their events. Does your website represent the fantasy world you are creating in your books? I like to think of my branding as a theme. The over-arching Mafioso style bleeds into every Facebook post and every video. Think about your genre and see if you can come up with a little something that will set you apart from the crowd.
This blog post is a part of a series of stories about the Dixie Mafia. Make sure to subscribe to Synova’s True Crime Newsletter so you don’t miss out on any of the stories.
Six weeks after the ambush of Sheriff Pusser and his wife on New Hope Rd, another death was reported to police in Gulfport, Mississippi. 17-yr-old Ronald Anderson was said to have committed suicide in an apartment he shared with the teenager, Jeffery D. Bass. Anderson’s body was transported to the Lang Funeral Home in Gulfport, then transferred to Faith Chapel in Pensacola before being taken to Vernon, Florida, for burial. No Autopsy was performed, and no one in law enforcement questioned the suicide ruling by local coroner Frank Hightower. This life-shattering event for the family barely caused a stir amongst the locals and only generated one small article about the death inquest. No one seemed to care that this crippled teenager could have been gunned down. It was more convenient to label it a suicide and go on.
What I’m about to relate is highly controversial. I have researched and studied this case trying to provide evidence. I have uncovered some compelling facts and some disturbing theories. In the 25-page Sheriff’s Investigation report into this case, I have discovered a few more tidbits of questionable behavior by law enforcement. I have struggled to remain unemotional in this case, but I will try to relate the story to you with logic and reason. I will let you decide what happened to Ronald Anderson for yourself.
Before getting into the case, I must explain to you that I was raised with extreme respect for law enforcement. As far as I’m concerned, anyone who is willing to put their life on the line to protect someone else is a hero in my book. When I mention something derogatory in this article, please don’t think I’m attributing the actions of a few shady officials to the entire law enforcement community. I bleed blue for our guys and gals in uniform and don’t wish anyone to think otherwise. Like every position in any organization, there are a few shady characters, but that doesn’t mean the entire system is corrupt.
Ronald “Ronnie” Anderson had a rough life from the start. He contracted Polio at the age of three and would have to wear a leg brace for the entirety of his life. One leg was smaller than the other, so buying shoes was a difficult task. He would need two different sizes, and one shoe must be mounted onto his braces. Ronnie was a beautiful, sweet child with large brown eyes. His sister remembers how he would cry when his friends would go play and leave him behind. He wanted so desperately to fit in, and family members think that’s what led to his death.
September 26, 1967:
Ronnie had gotten a job working at McDonald’s and decided to move out of his father’s house with an older boy named Jeffery Bass. He was so excited to be starting out on his own and had even gotten a little “friend” named Cathy. Ronnie finally felt like he belonged, but this wouldn’t last. Two months after moving out he started having trouble with Bass. Bass was older and rowdy and is rumored to run with a shady crowd. On this morning, Ronnie’s sister Phyllis offered to let him come to visit her for a while. Ronnie was excited to go. His parents had divorced when he was quite young. Phyllis had been a segregate mother while their mother was working trying to provide for four children.
Ronnie’s father, Lt. Dan Anderson, went to see the teenager that morning and to take him some new shoes. The teenager was busy packing some clothes and ironing his shirt. His sister would arrive from Pensacola, Florida, in a few hours, and he wanted to be ready. Dan Anderson returned home only to receive a phone call within the hour. Ronnie was dead.
The distraught father raced to the hospital only to be met by his ex-wife Rose Moore. Rose was also Jeffery’s aunt. Instead of calling the ambulance, Jeff had called his aunt since she was supposedly a registered nurse. Rose cleaned up Ronnie and changed his clothes before calling the ambulance. Why? No one could answer that question.
So, what happened to Ronnie?
Bass told the police that he was sitting on the bed playing with a .410 shotgun, and it accidentally went off shooting him under the chin. According to Bass, it was a shock because they thought the gun didn’t have a firing pin. Could Ronnie have been toying with the weapon thinking it was inoperable and accidentally shot himself? If so, why would the aunt come racing in and wash the teenager and change his clothes?
If that wasn’t unusual enough to cause investigators to question this case, the other witness had a different story to tell. Cathy claimed that she and Ronnie had argued and then he went upstairs and shot himself. That’s what she told the police, but that’s not what she said in her frantic phone call to Phyllis the night before Ronnie was buried.
The inconsolable sister had been given sleeping pills by her doctor and had turned in for the night. The phone rang with a frantic woman insisting on talking to Phyllis. Her husband assured the woman that Phyllis was out cold and couldn’t come to the phone and asked to take a message.
“He killed him. We killed him,” was all Cathy said before disconnecting.
Phyllis took all these discrepancies to the police and tried to get her brother’s case re-classified, but she couldn’t find anyone who would help her. Every time she decided to call and ask questions she would receive a call from her father telling her to let it alone. Phyllis couldn’t leave it alone and wondered how her father could. She didn’t realize the trouble she was causing by asking questions. Phyllis was an innocent sister grieving the loss of her precious crippled little brother. So she kept digging.
More discrepancies:
The funeral director for Faith Chapel Home in Pensacola was friends with Ronnie’s stepdad and mother. This gentleman confided in the family, saying he didn’t think it was suicide because there wasn’t any gunshot residue around the wound. Could that just be because Rose washed him, or could it mean that he was shot from a distance by someone else?
Rumors say that Ronnie’s relationship with Cathy was one-sided. If this is true, could Cathy’s real boyfriend have shot Ronnie?
The local coroner has come under some scrutiny after many claims he rules cases as suicide too quickly and too often. Some locals even referred to him as “Suicide Hightower.” After researching, I couldn’t find any formal charges brought against the coroner. Could they be just rumors, or could those stories be based on facts? Who knows?
Little did Phyllis know that some of her local law enforcement officials and government officials were arm and arm with the Dixie Mafia. This story wouldn’t come out publicly for decades. Did Ronnie hear something he shouldn’t have? Could Bass and his friends have silenced the boy forever?
Phyllis continued to press the police department for answers until one day her father called.
“Leave it alone before you get someone else killed,” he demanded.
Shocked, Phyllis backed off and tried to investigate a little more quietly. What happened to her brother, and why wasn’t her father pushing the issue? This inner turmoil continued for 36 long years.
It was November 2002, and Phyllis always came into town to visit her father to celebrate Thanksgiving and her father’s birthday. The two went to the local Waffle House as usual. During their meal, Dan Anderson’s entire persona changed, and he mumbled “That Son of a $&*&^” under his breath. Surprised, Phyllis turned to look and was quickly reprimanded by her father.
Dan waited until the man was out the door and his car pulled out onto the road before he said anything else to his daughter.
“Do you know who that was?”
“No, but I can tell you don’t like him, Daddy.”
“That’s the old boy who killed Ronnie.”
Phyllis about fell out of her chair. For thirty-six years, her father had reprimanded her for saying the very same thing. He claimed his son’s death as suicide for nearly four decades, and now he just pointed out the man who killed his son. Of course, Phyllis had questions, but her father clammed up about the subject and wouldn’t speak another word of it.
After her father went out to his car, Phyllis hung back and talked to the waitress that knew all the local gossip. That’s when she was given the name Jeffery Bass. Unfortunately, years later, during the Sheriff’s investigation, this waitress and the other surviving witnesses would change their stories or conveniently forget it entirely. Were they intimidated into silence, or did they really forget?
Sadly, Lt. Dan Anderson would be dead a short time after pointing out his son’s killer. Surely the police would stand up and take notice. Nope. I’ll get into that and the revelation of the Dixie Mafia in the famous case of Judge Sherry’s murder.
**Since first writing about this case in 2018, new evidence has come in to prove Ronnie was lured to the docks, beaten by a group of thugs and shot in the face to stage a suicide. You can find out the details in my new book Silenced By the Dixie Mafia: The Anderson Files**
Can an unlikely string of coincidences link all these cases, or are they tied together by the Dixie Mafia? I will leave it up to you to decide.
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Deep in the heart of Dixie lies a hidden evil. It’s tentacles stretch from state to state, from county to county. The Dixie Mafia has produced infamous outlaws, bank robbers, and murderers. The story contains tidbits from each of their lives and even includes the story of a famous sheriff, but this book is not about them.
Silenced by the Dixie Mafia is about a big sister who has fought for answers for over five decades. It’s about a father who was an ex-alcoholic turned into a gambling addict. A father’s decisions would lead to the death of his disabled son and eventually lead to his own demise. Now left alone to find answers and make sense of the chaos is a brave little southern belle named Phyllis.
Tying back to the ambush of Sheriff Buford Pusser on August 12, 1967, this story will change history as we know it. The world knew nothing about the Dixie Mafia until the murders of Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife Margaret in 1987. This public assassination brought this band of ruthless criminals into view, but the truth was still hidden until the death of the Andersons.
