Author and artist Diana Lee comes from a “wordy clan” of writers. Though she has always written, it wasn’t until retirement that she found the time to pursue a career in storytelling. Her newest novel is Blood on the Ball (October 2025), a murder mystery that drops readers into the exciting sport of flyball. After the discovery of a human foot during flyball practice, an investigation uncovers secrets better left hidden. Look for Diana on her website WeaselPuppy.com, on Facebook, and her Amazon author page.
What would you like readers to know about the story you tell in Blood on the Ball?
Fundamentally, it is a story about teamwork: teamwork among the team members, teamwork among the flyball community, teamwork in marriage and family, teamwork among community servants, including police, animal control, and animal rescue. Teamwork requires respect, because mutual respect gives people the space to act.
Who are your main characters, and why will readers connect with them?
Sylvia is a young woman just trying to find a safe place to be herself. Rick is a policeman with ethics who is burned out and worried he is losing his moral compass. Brenda and Buddy are in a marriage which has become intolerable. Jennifer has lost everything she loved and had to rebuild on a cracked foundation, while watching her ex-husband slip between the cracks. Steve desperately doesn’t want to rock the boat and endanger his current perceived peace.
For those who have never heard of flyball, explain the basics of this unusual sport.
Flyball is a relay race with four dogs on a team. They go over the jumps, trigger the flyball box, catch the ball that flies out and race back to let the next dog on the team be released. There is a lot of shouting, barking and chaos. It is also very cooperative. Teams loan handler-dog teams to each other. They may share equipment. It is tiered, to allow a wide range of participants to have success.
Tell us how Blood on the Ball came together.
One of my friends from my old flyball team wanted a flyball murder mystery. It sat in the back of my mind for years. My mother had always wanted me to pursue writing. When she passed, that kicked me off on actually digging in and writing stuff. Once I started working on this story, of course, it had to involve doggie drama, because dog people can create so much drama. Politics got politcky, so that trickled through.
What challenges did this work pose for you?
Flyball chaos is hard to comprehend unless you are actually in the middle of it. I wanted to use the interpersonal dynamics I had experienced, without making characters into carbon copies of the actual people I knew, as my former team members would be reading the book.
I usually write “weird stuff,” fantasy, speculative fiction. I wrote the book Skitters about cockroaches that have wars and epic journeys and romance and mythology. Another book is about an alien that comes to Earth in the form of a dog and just wants to experience being a dog.
The idea of just writing people wasn’t something I was sure would have much interest for me, and I had no idea how to do it. I am a pantser, and mysteries need plotting. So, I learned outlining. I bought a board from a craft store, and some chalkboard paint, and wrote out timelines and plot arcs and all that kind of picky stuff to sort it all out. I actually enjoyed the process of writing Blood on the Ball and am working on another murder mystery, this one involving the sport of dog agility.
Why is this novel unique in the murder mystery market?
Well, I don’t think there is another one set in the world of flyball. Most people don’t even know what flyball is. Other than that, I believe it’s pretty typical. There is a cattle dog puppy that is pretty prominent, but he doesn’t have a POV or anything. He is just a cute, naughty puppy.
What was your favorite part of putting this project together?
I liked learning to plot. I loved winding together the different plot lines.
KL Wagoner loves creating worlds of fantasy and science fiction. Her current work in progress is The Last Bonekeeper fantasy trilogy and short stories in the same universe. A member of SouthWest Writers since 2006, Kat has worked as the organization’s secretary, newsletter editor, website manager, and author interview coordinator. Kat is also a veteran, a martial art student, and a grandmother. Visit her at klwagoner.com.
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