WEIRD NEIGHBORS MAKE FOR GREAT CHARACTERS

Artwork from Depositphotos and Pixabay

My author, Lois Winston, has recently penned the next book in the series she writes about me. Sorry, Knot Sorry is the thirteenth book in the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. Thirteen novels and three novellas, and that woman hasn’t let up with the murder and mayhem.

The other day, I asked her to explain why me? Why not pick on someone else for a change? She shrugged and said, “Sorry, not sorry.” Or perhaps she was trying to be funny. Lois has a thing for puns.

 

She also has a thing for weird, interesting people and often puts them in her books. Look no further than the communist mother-in-law she saddled me with, based on her own communist mother-in-law. Other characters have been inspired by various people she’s either known or observed, but usually they’re a composite of several people molded into one character.

 

Now that the latest book is finished and up for preorder, Lois is looking ahead to the next book in the series. In one of the previous books, the house across the street from me was torn down and replaced with a McMansion. That plot thread began in A Stitch to Die For, the fifth book in the series, and has been mentioned in various other books, most recently in Sorry, Knot Sorry. However, I have yet to meet my new neighbors.

 

Recently, I’ve noticed Lois is thinking quite a bit about the neighbors who used to live in the actual teardown across from where she lived. Since I know what goes on in her brain, I now know the full story.

 

Years ago, when Lois and her husband purchased their home in New Jersey, she suspected an elderly, infirmed couple on a limited income lived in the dilapidated house across the street. Much to her surprise, she discovered the owners were a couple in their late thirties or early forties.

 

She began to refer to them as the Stoop Sitters because they’d camp out on the top step of their landing for hours at a time, either together or individually. Just sitting and smoking and often drinking beer, but never conversing with each other. Often the husband would remove his shirt and lie back on the concrete porch, his massive stomach pointing heavenward. He’d remain that way for hours, apparently napping.

 

When Mr. Stoop Sitter wasn’t sprawled bare-chested on the landing, he’d spend hours mowing his lawn. Except, the “lawn” was a barren patch of packed dirt and weeds. Yet, he’d constantly walk behind his mower, trimming the nonexistent grass of his extremely small front yard. Back and forth over the same square footage until the mower ran out of gas. The next day, after refilling the mower, the scene would repeat. This went on every day except during rainstorms or winter snows.

 

Lois assures me she’s no voyeur. She worked from home in an office at the front of her house, her desk positioned in front of the window. It was impossible not to notice the Stoop Sitters.

 

One day, her concentration was broken by a cat fight. Not a cat fight between two cats, though, but between two women. And it was over a man. Mrs. Stoop Sitter was accusing the other woman of trying to steal her husband.

 

The scene was right out of a reality TV show, minus the camera crew. Eventually, Mrs. Stoop Sitter hurled one last warning, stormed up the steps and entered her house, slamming the door behind her. The other woman turned around and walked down the street. 

 

Lois assures me Mr. Stoop Sitter was no one’s idea of a catch, but the scene outside her window proved otherwise. Obviously, there’s someone for everyone.

 

Eventually, the Stoop Sitters sold their house to a developer who tore it down and built a McMansion on the postage-size plot of land. I have a feeling Lois is mulling over introducing Mr. and Mrs. Stoop Sitter to the world in her next book. Will I wind up investigating their deaths? Or perhaps the death of Mr. Stoop Sitter’s girlfriend? There are lots of ideas churning around in my author’s brain. I guess I’ll have to see what she comes up with this time. All I know for sure is I’ll be involved, whether I like it or not.

 

Have you ever come across people you think would make great characters in a mystery? Post a comment for a chance to win a promo code for a free audiobook download of one of the first nine Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries currently available.

 

Sorry, Knot Sorry

An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, Book 13

 

Magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack may finally be able to pay off the remaining debt she found herself saddled with when her duplicitous first husband dropped dead in a Las Vegas casino. But as Anastasia has discovered, nothing in her life is ever straightforward. Strings are always attached. Thanks to the success of an unauthorized true crime podcast, a television production company wants to option her life—warts and all—as a reluctant amateur sleuth. 

 

Is such exposure worth a clean financial slate? Anastasia isn’t sure, but at the same time, rumors are flying about layoffs at the office. Whether she wants national exposure or not, Anastasia may be forced to sign on the dotted line to keep from standing in the unemployment line. But the dead bodies keep coming, and they’re not in the script.

 

Craft tips included.

 

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GRUMBLING AND GROUSING WITH ANASTASIA AND SAM

Sometimes not long after the initial introduction and pleasantries of meeting someone new, you discover the two of you have much in common. You quickly become fast friends. It happens often among authors, but wouldn’t they be surprised to learn that’s also the case when their characters meet each other? It certainly was for me and Samantha Newman. 

Samantha is the amateur sleuth protagonist in the Samantha Newman Mysteries. Like me, the reluctant amateur sleuth of the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, she often finds herself reluctantly dealing with dead bodies (Neither of us is a cop, coroner, or mortician. So dead bodies shouldn’t be part of our normal lives!) In addition, we both often lock horns with law enforcement because they rarely value our sleuthing skills. We also both have men in our lives who may possibly be involved with clandestine government operations. Talk about coincidences!

 

Anyway, while Lois Winston, my author, and Gay Yellen, Sam’s author, were at a recent writers’ conference, Sam and I met up for coffee and conversation where we spent much of our time grousing about those two writers who have turned our lives upside-down. 

 

So, Sam, any theories on why Lois and Gay yanked us out of our quiet lives and dropkicked us into a fictional world of constant murder and mayhem?

 

Samantha: I wish I knew, Anastasia. There I was, working my way up the ladder at a global corporation, when Gay took over and made the story about corporate greed and murder. The people at the top were arrested, the company cratered, and my life spiraled down from there. Lost my job, my house, and my reputation. Only bright spot was meeting Carter Chapman.

 

Anastasia: She’s done this to you in three books so far, right? How much longer do you think she’ll continue to drop dead bodies in your path? Lois is up to twelve already in the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, and once she returns from this conference, she’ll start pecking away at number thirteen.

 

Sam: Twelve? Yikes! She’s really run you ragged. Solving murders is exhausting, especially when the police think I’m a suspect, too. I know Gay is thinking about putting me through the wringer in two more books. The next one’s supposed to be at a winery. 

 

Anastasia: See if you can talk her out of it. Wineries are nothing but trouble. Zack and I recently returned from vacationing at one. Some vacation! Not only did we encounter more dead bodies in A Crafty Collage of Crime, but this time we nearly became victims ourselves.

 

Sam: Been there. Frankly, I’d rather go to the beach. Right now, I’ve landed in a better place than I’ve been in years, and I want to keep the good vibes coming.

 

Anastasia: Same here. My life is finally on the road back to normal after the fallout I dealt with after my first husband’s death. If only the dead bodies would stop finding me. And there’s also my pain in the patootie communist mother-in-law. At least you’re not stuck with someone like Lucille living with you. On second thought, I guess I still have a way to go before I see normal again.

 

Sam: Maybe we could revolt somehow. Go on strike, like the actors and writers did in Hollywood.

 

Anastasia: My commie mother-in-law would be in protest heaven if it weren’t for the fact that she’s become a reality TV junkie. I don’t think she cares about either the writers or the actors.

 

Sam: Actually, I tried protesting once. While Gay was writing The Body Next Door, I could see what was coming and tried to stop her. She had me in the elevator of the high-rise apartment I was borrowing, and I refused to leave. Just stayed in there for two weeks until she figured out how to get me out. It was a little claustrophobic, but I was proud of myself.

 

Anastasia: But what if they ignore us? They could always write new books with new characters. Then we’d be...

 

Sam: We’d disappear!

 

They are silent for a moment.

 

Anastasia: Zack and I would...

 

Sam: Plus, I really like my new job. And Carter. I suppose I could get used to being an amateur sleuth, if that’s my destiny.

 

Anastasia: Maybe this is like the devil you know? We really have no control over our own destinies, do we? I guess we’ll just have to grin and bear it and hope for the best. (And did I just use four cliches in two sentences? Yikes! I guess it’s a good thing I’m the amateur sleuth and Lois is the author. She’d never write four cliches in two sentences.)

 

Anyway, it was great grousing with you. We should stay in touch. Amateur sleuths need to keep together.

 

Sam: You bet!

Today only, click here for a free Kindle download of The Body Business.

The Samantha Newman Mysteries

All Samantha Newman wants is a good job, a place to call her own, and a chance at love. But in her rollercoaster life, things don’t come easy. Just when success seems possible, a dead body show up and Samantha's in the hot seat. If she didn’t have a sense of humor, she’d really go crazy. In the Samantha Newman Mysteries—The Body Business, The Body Next Door, and The Body in the News—you’ll laugh and maybe shed a tear as she wades through minefields in search of the life she wants to live.

BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--AN INTERVIEW WITH ROMANTIC SUSPENSE AND MYSTERY AUTHOR SUZANNE BAGINSKIE

Today we sit down for a chat with romantic suspense and mystery author Suzanne Baginskie who's been writing ever since her mother gifted her with a five-year diary for her eighth birthday. She recently retired from a law firm as a paralegal-office manager. Now she writes daily spinning tales of romantic suspense that pair tantalizing mystery with compelling romance. Learn more about Suzanne and her books at her website.

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

After years of writing and selling short fiction and nonfiction stories that mostly appeared in romance & mystery anthologies and twenty-two Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies, I dreamed of writing a book that would have only my name on the cover.

 

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

After nineteen years, I wrote my first novel and entered a writing contest for a romantic suspense Harlequin line. Three months later, I was notified my book was in the last ten entries, but I didn’t win. The best part was it forced me to write a complete novel that I could rewrite and submit to other publishers. During Covid-19, with time on my hands, I saw a call out for romance manuscripts. I polished up the book and submitted Dangerous Charade. A week later in a Zoom call, I was offered a five-book contract and asked to write a series. 

 

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

I’m traditionally published.

 

Where do you write?

Years ago, when we searched for a new home and walked through many different models, I fell in love with my current house because it had a small bonus office. That feature sold me on this particular home. When we moved in, I purchased some large bookshelves, a rolltop desk and matching wooden chair. The area has a large window and also a French door with little glass panes. I keep a Do not Disturb – Writing in Progress sign on the doorknob. It doesn’t keep my hubby out though.

 

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

Some days, I need pure silence. Other times, I play my favorite radio station with light rock music in the background and then realized I’m so deep into my head at times, I don’t even hear it.

 

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

I had a lengthy twenty-nine year career as a paralegal/office manager in a law office that handled criminal cases, divorces, and other general law. I also volunteered for the local Sheriff for nine years and helped with the Citizen Academy classes. I reaped valuable information from them both. Twisted criminal plots are happening almost every day. I watch television shows/movies and the news, read the newspapers, and discovered crazy characters reside around us all. 

 

Describe your process for naming your character?

I name my characters in three different ways. Number one is using a baby book of 60,000 first names. My 2007 edition features the meanings, origins and all the derivations. The last names are harder, I either take the daily obituary column page, and borrow a last name from there, or think about my family and friends and use one or two of them in my stories, first or last name. I get tickled when they notice their name is in my book. Then I know for sure they read them!

 

Real settings or fictional towns?

I like actual town settings and tend to research so I can name the interstates and use city highlights to make the area more realistic. I use FBI buildings in the town vicinity featured in the story. The weather plays an important role in some of my books too. The first is set in a small fishing town of Crystal Springs, Florida, the second in Allentown and the mountains of Pennsylvania and the third in Daytona Beach, Florida. 

 

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?

In my third book, the male FBI special agent’s wife was ill with cancer and passed away while he was on duty. After he buried her, he just couldn’t bear to take off his wedding ring and wore it for over two years. You’ll have to read it to find out why. When he fell in love with his partner, he wondered what she thought of him still wearing the ring throughout their missions, but he never took it off. At the very end, he finally removed it and stuck it in his drawer before he proposed.

 

What’s your quirkiest quirk?

I’ve realized I’ve been analytical all of my life. Everything I do has to be done logically and not out of order. I’ve established a steady routine and strong habits. I’m also curious, modest, and very observant. Monday through Friday, I begin with an early four-mile walk, and then a shower and breakfast. After that, I go into my office and work on my writing.

 

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,)

which one would it be? Why?

I would choose to write Wizard of Oz, the literary book by L. Frank Baum. As a child, I read this book over and over and it’s still my favorite. As a writer, I realized it gives you the perfect guide to writing a book since every character in it wants and needs something and they go the extra mile to obtain it. 

 

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

There is one thing I would do over. I would have chosen the career of a flight attendant. So, I could have earned the status of free flights for life because I love to travel. Since I can’t do it over, I grab every opportunity to see the world with my husband and friends. We do cruise a lot. I’m retired and I make sure there’s always a cruise booked in the near future.

 

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Lateness! I was brought up to arrive earlier than necessary and I still exist in this manner, so it irks me very much if someone is late.

 

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?

Coffee daily, lots of books to read and a roof over my head to protect me.

 

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

When we first moved to Florida, I took a job at the counter of a drycleaner business. After the clothes were dropped off and the ticket was written, I had to empty the pants and jacket pockets before setting them in the cleaning basket. I hated sticking my hands inside all those pockets, it made me cringe. And I’d pull out the oddest things, dirt included. Crumbled up handkerchiefs or used tissues, grimy combs, and lots of coins. Too bad they didn’t give me rubber gloves back then. I quit after three weeks. 

 

Who’s your all-time favorite literary character (any genre)? Why?

I’ll go with Dorothy Gale in the Wizard of Oz. She landed in an unknown world, killed a witch, and never missed a beat. Then continued on her journey to find a way back home to Kansas and her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. I loved her passion and the perseverance trait she possessed. 

 

Ocean or mountains?

I am a Thalassophile. A lover of the blue ocean. I grew up in New Jersey and always enjoyed our summer trips to the shore. I love walking on the sandy beach when the Atlantic Ocean’s waves crashed against the shoreline and covered my feet. I guess that’s why I’m addicted to cruising. I never tire of gazing at the bluest, foamy topped waves hammering the ship as it sails on sea days to our next port or the long wake it leaves behind it. 

 

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

City girl for sure. I love to be close to all the shopping malls, grocery stores, churches, and theaters. Plus, the airport and most of all the Florida cruise ports. 

 

What’s on the horizon for you?

Dangerous Undercurrents, Book four in my FBI Affairs series. I’m currently writing my novel and hope to have it completed in the near future. This book will take my FBI characters off dry land and have them board a cruise ship for an adventurous, undercover mission. 

 

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?

My husband makes all my business cards and bookmarks. He is so creative and is also an avid reader. His suggestions, support and understanding has really helped me during my entire writing career. I sincerely thank him in this blog. 

 

Dangerous Charade

FBI Affairs, Book 1

 

When an undercover sting in Nevada at a Las Vegas Casino goes wrong, FBI Agent Noelle Farrell’s cover is blown, and someone wants revenge. Noelle is sent to Florida under the Witness Protection Program where she runs into her old partner, FBI Agent Kyle Rivers, a man she worked closely with and admired. Kyle’s mourning his father. He failed to keep him safe from a deadly stalker. Deep in hiding as a witness for the IRS, someone targets Noelle. She fears for herself and her four-year-old daughter’s safety. Noelle struggles to keep her independence. Kyle vows to protect Noelle, unaware she has a secret—one her assailants already know.

 

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AN INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR SANDRA MADDEN

Today we sit down for a chat with author Sandra Madden who writes lighthearted historicals, contemporary romance and cozy mysteries. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

When did you realize you wanted to write novels? 

After years of writing for others with commercial radio commercials, presentations, and PBS television series, I desperately wanted to write something on my own.

 

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication? 

I was published traditionally by Kensington about two years after I began part-time…writing in the evenings after my day job.

 

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

 I’m traditionally published and have done some indie publishing.

 

Where do you write? 

I write in my dedicated office – with book covers on the wall to remind me I can do it.

 

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind? 

I like to write in total silence. Far better to hear those voices in my head!

 

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular? 

Most of my plots and characters come from my imagination, although I’m certain this is formed by observation and eavesdropping. Yes, writers eavesdrop!

 

Describe your process for naming your character?  

Sometimes, very rarely, the name of my character, or characters, is just there. But other times as the character grows, the name needs to be changed to fit the character more appropriately. When I’m truly at a loss for a name, I go to Ancestry and find an ancestor’s name…keeps it all in the family! I used to have baby name books, but now the internet furnishes those when needed. 

 

Real settings or fictional towns?

I use fictional town names, but my settings are important. I like to feel and see them while I’m writing, therefore they’re usually places I know well.

 

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has? 

My heroine Kathleen has a Harm Avoidance disorder. Which is unfortunate since she’s threatened on every level at her new (old apartment with stuffed fish on the wall) home in Paradise Key.

 

What’s your quirkiest quirk?

I start a writing project then tell myself it can’t be done. Hours or days later, I go back to the computer and do it.

 

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?

I would have liked to write anything Susan Elizabeth Phillips has written. Her books are witty and romantic. Her characters are skillfully developed. I like Julia Quinn’s historical novels as well. (I’m a positive Pollyanna type!)

 

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

I wish I’d paid more attention to the business aspect of writing. And changed with it as it has changed over time.

 

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

People claiming to be best friends with my late husband, who weren’t. 

 

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?

I would love the sun and quiet but would want my family, books, and fine wine with me. 

 

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

I worked in a bank for maybe three weeks. My boss was in therapy, and it wasn’t going well.

 

Who’s your all-time favorite literary character (any genre)? Why? 

Scarlet O’hara of course! Even her flaws contributed to her unique and awesome personality.

 

Ocean or mountains?

Definitely ocean!

 

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

I enjoy the country for respite, but at heart, I’m a city girl.

 

What’s on the horizon for you?

 I’m currently working on a women’s fiction book which has family ties.

 

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books? 

My biggest supporter was my late husband, Dave Madden. He always promoted me and the books. His memoir was the only nonfiction book I’ve ever written. Dave and I met in college and did not marry until years later. By then, he was known as Reuben Kinciad, the manager of The Partridge Family. He urged me to write as Sandra Madden before I was a legal Madden. Part of his plan, I believe. Dave was a very kind man…but sneaky!

 

The Paradise Key Caper

Kathleen Cassidy's transition from uptight Boston babe to barefoot island warrior begins when her newly inherited sleek, go-fast boat explodes. Soon the intrepid redhead is questioning her father's death under the watchful eyes of a rugged Miccosukee fishing guide who is definitely not her type, an attractive marine archeologist who definitely is her type and perhaps...a killer. 

 

Cassidy is plainly a fish out of water and way down on her luck when she arrives on Paradise Key to claim her inheritance, a cool o-fast boat and a battered old bar called the 'Gator Hole. Items bequeathed by the father she barely remembers, a man her mother referred to as "Wild Bill" - when she was being kind. 

 

Joe Scipio, ICE undercover agent and full-blooded Florida Miccosukee, lives on his boat docked behind the 'Gator Hole. Although he'd promised her father to look after Cassidy, he considers the headstrong beauty supremely unsuited for the Keys lifestyle. Struggling with his attraction to her, nevertheless, Joe constantly urges her to return to Boston where she belongs. To no avail. Mystery, romance, humor and a cast of wacky Keys characters come together in this wildly entertaining novel!

 

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AN INTERVIEW WITH CRYSTAL HAGAN FROM AUTHOR CHRISTINE DESMET'S MISCHIEF IN MOONSHINE SERIES

Today we sit down for a chat with Crystal Hagan from author Christine Desmet’s Mischief in Moonstone Series. 

What was your life like before your author started pulling your strings? 

I was teaching first grade in a village called Moonstone that hugs Lake Superior in northern Wisconsin. I also live on a small acreage and enjoyed my animals, particularly my reindeer, Rudolph, that was going to be featured in our live-animal holiday display until he was stolen. 

 

What’s the one trait you like most about yourself? 

Patience. If you teach first graders you have to be patient and kind, and of course a peacemaker because of the occasional scuffles among the kids.

 

What do you like least about yourself? 

My inability to give up some old habits—even an old boyfriend. I’m a bit too much of a traditionalist, too. When I apologize to people for anything small or otherwise, I always have to bring them a pie or cake I’ve baked, or Christmas cookies at this time of year.

 

What is the strangest thing your author has had you do or had happen to you? 

She hid my reindeer Rudolph on me in a mansion we call the North Pole here in Moonstone. An older gentleman who used to play Santa Claus lives there, but he’s become a curmudgeon. And now, his rather handsome son is back from Arizona visiting for the holidays, and he says they’re not returning Rudolph to me. I believe his father is in cahoots with our mayor who wants my live-animal display discontinued. So, my author has me fighting for Rudolph on two fronts. And my first-graders are very upset because they think Santa Claus can’t find our town without Rudolph leading the sleigh.

 

Do you argue with your author? If so, what do you argue about? 

I don’t argue with her so much as the local townspeople and the two men living in the North Pole mansion. Some of my first-graders don’t have much. Some won’t be able to see a parent for Christmas for any number of reasons. My author likes romance, and she’d like me to settle into a romantic story, but I tell her that Peter LeBarron may be handsome, but he stole Rudolph and I want him back! For me, the mystery has to be solved soon so the kids aren’t feeling sad.

 

What is your greatest fear? 

That I won’t be able to bring a good holiday to my first-graders and to the people in my quaint, little village. This is a poor area, and some of the children need me to come through for them with happy things like being able to pet Rudolph.

 

What makes you happy? 

I enjoy seeing my students smile. And baking and making candies. I make homemade popcorn balls for the students and teach them games in the snow, such as “Duck, Duck, Goose.” I’m hoping that the father of one of my students will be able to come home for Christmas. Jobs are scarce here in northern Wisconsin, and some of the guys travel to other states for construction or other jobs.

 

If you could rewrite a part of your story, what would it be? Why? 

Sticking with my old boyfriend too long. I’m the loyal type, and somehow I keep excusing his slights or so-called forgetfulness. This new guy Peter LeBarron keeps pointing out I need to consider that we all outgrow people just as we outgrow other things. 

 

Of the other characters in your book, which one bugs you the most? Why? 

Peter LeBarron certainly bugs me. Those feelings have to do with him growing up here until high school when he left for private school and college. He essentially abandoned his father, I believe. He says there’s more to the story. But do I have the patience to listen to the man who stole my reindeer and won’t give back Rudolph? Of course, I don’t get along with Mayor Bob Winters either because he dislikes my ideas for drawing tourists to Moonstone for the holidays. Two men who don’t believe in Rudolph leading a sleigh “slay” me!

 

Of the other characters in your book, which one would you love to trade places with? Why?

My best friend Rita Johnson. Rita is the postmistress in Moonstone. Her daughter Gretchen is in my class. Rita is so together, smart, and very quick with her wit and actions. She put up a flier on the “FBI Most Wanted” board for my missing Rudolph, and of course it said something to the effect “last seen with Peter LeBarron.” Peter wanted to rip that down, but of course defacing federal property might land him in jail. That action of Rita’s on my behalf began to change the dynamic in my relationship with Peter LeBarron. I learned he had a lot more secrets besides kidnapping Rudolph.

 

Tell us a little something about your author. Where can readers find her website/blog? 

My author is at her website, where you'll find links to her other social media, and at Blackbird Writers, where you'll find a link to theBlackbird Writers Discussion Forum and the group's newsletter.

 

What's next for you?

My author has me continuing to get involved with new people coming to Moonstone. Murder and other types of mysteries appear in the remainder of the Mischief-in-Moonstone Series novellas. All have sweet romances included. In Misbehavin’ in Moonstone, No. 2 in the series, I meet the new chef Kirsten Peplinski, who discovers there’s an illegal gambling boat off-shore in Lake Superior featuring scantily clad servers. The men in town suddenly say they’re going fishing. Kirsten discovers evidence the party boat’s captain might actually be a pirate scouting Moonstone to steal jewels and other valuables. 

 

When Rudolph was Kidnapped

Mischief in Moonstone Series, Book 1

 

When her pet reindeer, Rudolph, is stolen from the live animal holiday display, first-grade teacher Crystal Hagan has a big problem on her hands. Her students fear that Christmas will be canceled. Ironically, the prime suspect is a man who lives in a mansion known as the “North Pole.” And to her shock, Peter LeBarron admits to kidnapping Rudolph and he won’t give him back without some romantic “negotiations.”

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SETTING PLAYS A HUGE ROLE IN AUTHOR PATY JAGER'S LATEST SUSPENSEFUL MYSTERY

The Wallowa Mountains

Paty Jager is an award-winning author of fifty-three novels, eight novellas, and numerous anthologies of murder mystery and western romance. All her work have Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Paty and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. Riding horses and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it. Learn more about Paty and her books at her Blog and Website where you’ll also find links to her other social media accounts.

When readers asked for more outdoor adventures in my Gabriel Hawke novels, I let my mind wander with how I could have my character out in the wilderness more and still be working on a murder mystery. 

 

Since Gabriel Hawke is an Oregon State Trooper with the Fish and Wildlife Division, basically what used to be called a game warden, he does spend a lot of time outdoors. But when he is following leads on a homicide, he needs to be closer to communications and labs to gather the information he needs to find the killer. 

 

In the latest book, Owl’s Silent Strike, I start off with Hawke on a week’s vacation, helping his friend Dani Singer travel into the mountains by horseback in early December to fly out her helicopter. Dani owns Charlie’s Lodge a minimalist resort in the Wallowa Mountains that can only be accessed by foot, horseback, or air. She had already flown her small airplane out and wanted her helicopter in the “valley” over the winter to work on it.

 

When a snowstorm hits the mountain before they arrive at the lodge, Hawke has to use all of his winter skills to not only keep them alive but to discover the identity of a body he finds in the barn. While reading books about avalanches and winter tracking and conducting my own study of blood droplets in snow, I tried putting myself in Hawke’s snowshoes as he searched for a missing person and ventured up into the mountains more than once to find the evidence needed to bring justice to the body in the barn.

 

Yes, I said my own study of blood droplets. Using blood saved from homegrown beef I had thawed to cook, I made droplets in the snow and watched them for several days to see how they reacted to the snow and cold. It was a fun experiment, and it gave me insight into what my character would see while tracking a person with a gunshot wound. 

 

Growing up at the base of the Wallowa Mountains, I have experienced deep snow, riding horses, and snowshoeing. Luckily, I haven’t had frostbite, but I’ve had some extremities that have felt like ice. Warming them up isn’t fun. Using some of my experiences, I hope I was able to make the trials that Hawke and Dani go through feel real. 

 

What I didn’t know from experience, I read up on, Googled, and asked people for help. I have a pretty long line of thank-yous for this book. From beta readers who picked up on law enforcement and medical actions that weren’t correct to a critique partner who highlighted multiple uses of some of my favorite words. And a wonderful pilot reader/fan who answers all my aircraft questions.

 

It’s this community of readers/fans and specialists who help me do the best I can to be accurate while writing fiction stories. 

 

The next book in this series will begin in Montana. I spent a week there recently driving dirt roads and taking photos to help me better see the story that will take Hawke to Salmon Lake and the surrounding area. In this book, he will again be outside a lot as he tries to find his sister who is running from a murderer. 

 

Owl’s Silent Strike

A Gabriel Hawke Novel, Book 9

 

Unexpected snowstorm…

Unfortunate accident… 

And a body…

 

What started out as a favor and a leisurely trip into the mountains, soon turns State Trooper Gabriel Hawke’s life upside down. The snowstorm they were trying to beat comes early, a horse accident breaks Dani Singer’s leg, and Hawke finds a body in the barn at Charlie’s Lodge. 

 

Hawke sets Dani’s leg, then follows the bloody trail of a suspect trying to flee the snow-drifted mountains. Hawke is torn between getting the woman he loves medical care and knowing he can’t leave a possible killer on the mountain.

 

Before the killer is brought to justice, Dani and Hawke will put their relationship to the test and his job on the line. 

 

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AN INTERVIEW WITH MYSTERY AUTHOR SHERRY MORRIS

Today we sit down for a chat with multi-genre author Sherry Morris who writes cozy mysteries, romantic suspense, time travel, and twentieth century historical mysteries. Learn more about Sherry and her books at her blog.

When did you realize you wanted to write novels? 

At the turn of the century.

 

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication? 

About two years.

 

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author? 

I began traditionally published back in 2005 as eBooks were evolving. I have my rights back and am now indie published.

 

Where do you write? 

At home. Either on my desktop in the guest room or on my laptop in the dining room, family room, or outside on the lanai.

 

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind? 

Silence is absolutely required. I can’t write with music on, I’ll start typing the lyrics. 

 

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular? 

I usually start with a situation or character from real life, then my muse says and does things Sherry never would and the story takes hold.

 

Describe your process for naming your character? 

It usually takes at least fifty pages before I settle on the character’s name. I do a lot of search and replace.

 

Real settings or fictional towns? 

Both

 

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has? 

She shakes the pixie dust in her Tinkerbelle watch.

 

What’s your quirkiest quirk? 

I won’t eat anything that has a speck of mayonnaise in it or near it.

 

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why? 

Take the Monkeys and Run by Karen Cantwell because it’s as kooky as what I write, and it was set in Northern Virginia, where I raised my family.

 

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours? 

I wish I wouldn’t have stopped writing ten years ago when I was rejected by my old critique group.

 

What’s your biggest pet peeve? 

I don’t like being singled out or told I can’t do something that everyone else is doing.

 

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves? Sunscreen, matches, and an alpha male to protect me.

 

What was the worst job you’ve ever held? 

Hanging raison-colored sweaters in a factory.

 

What’s the best book you’ve ever read? 

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

 

Ocean or mountains? 

Ocean

 

City girl/guy or country girl/guy? 

Suburban girl

 

What’s on the horizon for you? 

Finishing a sequel to Inappropriate, finally finding my audience and marketing to them, becoming an awesome positive presence in my newborn granddaughter’s world.

 

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books? 

I recently moved from Virginia, hoping to get away from a yard frequented by snakes (more than 2 dozen last summer) to Florida, where a cottonmouth snake greeted us the first week. Our new densely developed community is overflowing with alligators. We’ve also spotted coyotes, wild boars, and a bear.

 

Hundred Dollar Bill

A 20th Century American History Mystery, Book 1

She's a Secret Service Agent in FDR's Washington...

In Book 1 of the 20th Century American History Mystery Series, an alluring Secret Service Agent must apprehend a counterfeiter code-named Hundred Dollar Bill. He's a crooked cop with blue eyes deeper than the devil. She crosses a line and is framed for murder.

With no means of proving her innocence, she goes on the lamb. The agent tasked to apprehend her has a problem. He's crazy in love with this dame.

Meanwhile at the White House, Eleanor Roosevelt finds a pearl-handled pistol in the President's secretary's desk. Not wanting to alarm her husband, Mrs. Roosevelt puts the floozy under surveillance.

It's all a game of cat and mouse from Washington to the Florida Keys.

If you like Alfred Hitchcock movies, you'll love this historical action adventure.

 

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