DorothyL: 15 Years of Mysterious Fun - Quotes
"I first heard about DorothyL at a Mid-Winter meeting of the ALA in February 1994. The meeting was held in Los Angeles -- we had a big earthquake here just a couple of weeks beforehand, and IIRC, an aftershock or two during the convention itself. I had one book out, and second just out or soon to be published (can't recall the pub date now), and through Sisters In Crime, I was invited to be on a panel of mystery writers at the ALA event -- a first for me. So it was in rather bestirring times that I first heard of the list -- several librarians at the event asked me if I knew about DorothyL. (It seems to me that lots of the list members were at universities and libraries in those days.) Through the kindness and patience of librarians at CSULB, I learned how to use Telnet and Usenet to get the list. (Leslie Kay Swigart, are you still on the list?) Ah, dial-up and a laughably slow modem in those days, but it all seemed amazing to me at the time. I've met friends through DorothyL, said goodbye to some good and kind people I knew only through the list, and felt a part of the community here ever since. Laughed and cried. I have relied on it to be the first place I've learned of new writers, new releases, and most of the news of the mystery community. .Basically, DorothyL was the first real enticement I had to get on the Internet at all. Not in my wildest imaginings could I have foreseen all that came of that." Jan Burke
"I joined DorothyL in 1994. The reason I know that is because its the year "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" was published and I remember it being discussed. But I cannot for the life of me remember how I heard about DorothyL. .I mostly lurked back then with an occasional post. After awhile I disappeared entirely. Not for any other reason except for things getting busy in my life, including making a move from Atlanta to Boone, NC. But even when I wasn't a daily reader, I still had to read often enough to feel like I wasn't completely missing out on what was happening in the world of DorothyL. .DorothyL has gone through lots of changes, but the one constant is being able to hear about new books and new writers here. And then being able to discuss them with a fun, knowledgeable group of people." Kaye Barley
"I heard about DorothyL long before I joined in '96. It was mentioned frequently in the MWA newsletters, and I went to the DL panel at the St Paul B'Con and saw/met many members before I ever went online at all (my computer at the time didn't even have a modem). The 3rd e-mail I ever sent was the request to join DL. Back then, it was digest only, and it was the first thing I read when I got up in the morning. I savored every word, every post, every controversy, every laugh (and there were always laughs). It took me while to get the hang of netiquette- I actually sent a virus warning to DL once, and was gently smacked down for it. I also once sent a message meant for my agent to DL, but Danger Mouse intervened and removed it before I humiliated myself in front of 3,000 people." Kathleen Taylor
"This list-reader joined Dorothyl in 1995 working from my first computer ever. DL was recommended to me from my local librarian. I was so keyboard-timid and computer-inexperienced I actually made a long distance phone call to Diane Kovacs and/or Kara Robinson (remember ladies?) for "general" help and it worked. This memory just proves how valuable our moderators are to the List. Thank you ladies - and I'm still reading." Raffles a/k/a Bonnie Zeltmann
"I've been on DorothyL since about 1994. One thing I have really enjoyed is exchanging e-mail with some of my now-favorite authors. Seeing Sara Frommer's post on this topic reminded me--she is one of the authors, and I always enjoy seeing her when we both go to Magna Cum Murder. .I signed up for the nom Laura Principal. Once when I signed with it, Michelle Spring herself posted to the list, astonished at seeing this name used. I e-mailed her to explain and later met her at St. Hilda's mystery weekend in Oxford, which of course I would never have known about except for DorothyL. So I got a trip to England, a photo of me with P.D. James (which impressed my colleagues in the university library), and many conversations with authors, thanks to the list." Laura Principal (Michelle Spring's academic turned PI) aka Gail Hueting
"I've been lurking here off and on for about a dozen years under several different email addresses. (It is truly a mystery to me why any ISP I use goes out of business or is sold.) My earliest memories of DorothyL involve some of Meg Chittenden's wit and Harlan Coben pushing his soon to be or perhaps recently released first book. I have no idea of how I found DotL in the first place." Diana Tixier Herald
"Years ago, when I was on the staff of the old CompuServe Authors Forum, running the mystery section, people talked about DorothyL as if it were a terrifying place where sensible people never dared post anything for fear of being attacked by a wild herd of flamers. Took me a while to work up courage to check it out. I joined, didn't post for a long time, dropped it a time or two because I had no time to read it. Eventually I dared to start posting. Now I'm one of those DLers who miss it terribly during the holiday hiatus. I may go for a while between posts, but I always read it. Great list, great people, and I've discovered many wonderful books and authors through the posts here." Sandra Parshall
