I secretly aspire to be Jessica Fletcher. She’s the heroine of the TV show Murder, She Wrote, which was so popular in the ’80s and ’90s. And no, I’m not saying that I want to be a detective and solve climes. Plus, I’d rather not have murder follow me around everywhere I go. Jessica can’t go anywhere – a family vacation, a writing convention, a book tour – without someone falling down dead. No, that’s not what makes her so cool – at least not in my estimation.

To mark this year, the 20th anniversary of the final episode of Murder, She Wrote, here’s my list of what makes J. B. Fletcher so awesome.

She’s a strong female character and role model for others. She has a solid set of morals, she makes her own decisions, and she stands up for what she believes in. I found this article by Michelle Delgado that speaks to this point: Jessica Fletcher of “Murder, She Wrote” is My Anti-Ageism Heroine

J. B. Fletcher

She’s a famous author. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you’ve got some idea of just what I love to do: write! And my goal is to one day publish a book. I don’t know how many books J.B. Fletcher has published, but I’m in awe.

She’s very observant. No matter how hard I try, I doubt I’ll ever be as observant as Jessica. I’m the complete opposite of observant. I have no sense of direction because I pay no attention to street signs or geographic markers as I drive. I could easily meet a new person and then not be able to tell you a thing about what that person looks like five seconds later. I really need to channel J.B. Fletcher’s observational skills. I’m working on it: paying more attention to what’s around me, trying to add more detail to what I write, focusing in on little details so they stay with me longer. But I’ve got a long way to go.

She tries lots of new things, even if it might seem rather far-fetched. There was the time Jessica was temporarily appointed to Congress, and then there was the time Jessica became part owner of a football team. Imagine having those kinds of experiences! I don’t actually want to be in Congress or own a sports team, but I’d sure have some interesting stories to tell if I did.

She is very good at playing dumb and, in the end, causing everyone else (usually the bad guys) to look dumb. As Delgado writes in her article (reference above), “Jessica sees and remembers everything, and is ultimately only helped by playing into people’s expectations. By acting confused, feigning infirmity, or appearing fixated on a seemingly insignificant detail of a case, Jessica regains control of these situations in order to get the information she needs.” I, too, am excellent at playing dumb. I’m so good at it, in fact, that sometimes it’s hard for me to tell if I’m playing dumb or not. Unfortunately, I’m not so good at using what I learn to regain “control of these situations.” Enhancing my observational skills, as mentioned previously, would probably help.

I’m not the only one in the J. B. Fletcher fan club either. I’ve already shared Delgado’s article, but as I found when preparing this blog entry, there’s lots more out there. So, I’ll close with this article on 10 life lessons you can learn from Murder, She Wrote and this list of facts you might not know about the show. Enjoy! I’m feeling the need to watch an episode of Murder, She Wrote right now.