When did you realize you wanted to write novels?
Probably after I’d written (and published) a few short stories and realized I wanted to write longer and more deeply.
How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?
For a long time that “dream” was more wishful thinking. I got serious about novel writing around the late 1990s. My first book, Resort to Murder (written as Mary Ellen Hughes) was published in December, 2000.
Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?
All my books have been traditionally published. I re-issued the older ones when I received the rights back to them, so I guess that makes me a hybrid author.
Where do you write?
In a spare bedroom upstairs, next to a window where I can catch sight of any wildlife - and occasionally Amazon delivery vans.
Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?
Silence is definitely golden when I write. For me, music isn’t background noise but something to pay attention to and enjoy, so it would be totally distracting.
How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?
Plots might have bits and pieces from my life but probably 90% comes from my imagination. The same with characters. I’ve used characteristics from people I’ve known but then change physical descriptions enough to make them unrecognizable.
Describe your process for naming your character?
I used to sift through obituary notices for first names of elderly characters. Now I go to the Social Security Popular Names by Decade website to choose first names, then random name generator for last names. Sometimes the right name pops up immediately. Other times I might change it several times during the writing until it feels right.
Real settings or fictional towns?
Fictional towns, but often within reach of real ones. The Craft Corner Mysteries are in a fictional town within reach of Gettysburg, PA.
What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?
I’m not sure how quirky it is, but the adult daughter of my main character gave up a better paying job to work at an alpaca farm (marketing, not stall-shoveling). Her favorite alpaca is Rosie, who Hayley would love to adopt.
What’s your quirkiest quirk?
I like to do online jigsaw puzzles. No table space required, and they can be very relaxing.
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Bad grammar used by someone who should know better – like a television news anchor - is like nails on a blackboard to me.
What was the worst job you’ve ever held?
Truthfully, my worst job was a part-time one at a bookstore. I thought it would be wonderful, but most of my time was spent finding books for others and ringing them up, with no time left to browse through them myself. Frustrating!
What’s the best book you’ve ever read?
I can’t really say. The more I read, the more my tastes and understanding of fiction evolve, so that what blew me away twenty years ago might get a different reaction now. Or I might have once dismissed a great book that I’d feel differently about now.
Ocean or mountains?
Both, but 75/25 mountains to ocean.
City girl/guy or country girl/guy?
I grew up in a small city but have been a country girl for years – with occasional city visits.
What’s on the horizon for you?
I’m currently working on book #3 of the Craft Fair Knitter Mystery Series: Knits, Knots, and Knives, in which a murder occurs during a Civil War reenactment.
Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?
Just that I hope anyone who reads my books enjoys them as much as I enjoyed writing them. As Mary Ellen Hughes, I’ve written eleven books (4 series) and have now written two books in my new series as Emmie Caldwell. I feel very fortunate, and I’m delighted to hear from any reader, either through my website or on Facebook.
Thank you so much for having me here!
A Craft Fair Knitters Mystery, Book 2
When murder pierces the fabric of the close-knit Crandalsburg Craft Fair, it's up to the Ninth Street Knitters to make a killer slip their stitch.
The Craft Fair may have hit a few snags lately, but knitting enthusiast Lia Geiger is hopeful her quiet life will return to its usual patterns in no time. Her daughter has officially moved back home, and sure, the house is a little crowded with Hayley's take-home work from the alpaca farm, but that's a price Lia will happily pay. All seems well until Cori Littlefield, a new vendor with a gift for crochet, is found dead, sending shock waves through all of Crandalsburg.
What begins as a tragic accident turns into a snarled spool of lies that only the combined efforts of the Ninth Street Knitters can untangle. When Lia makes a connection between Cori's death and a decades-old murder, it's up to her to weave together the clues and find the truth.
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Thanks Anastasia and Lois for inviting me here today.
ReplyDeleteHappy to have you, Mary Ellen!
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