The Black Thumb

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Annette Drake

Author Frankie Bow stopped by to talk about her newest release, The Black Thumb. Welcome, Frankie.

Why do you write cozy mysteries?
I write what I enjoy reading, which is a blend of academic satire and cozy mystery. Some favorites are Sarah Caudwell’s mysteries featuring Oxford don Hilary Tamar, Dorothy Sayers’ Gaudy Night, and Joanne Dobson’s Karen Pelletier mysteries.

Please tell us about your book. What ideas or images inspired this novel?
Things that inspired The Black Thumb, in no particular order: Undermine-y people who serve up backhanded compliments and are astonished when you take offense; the utter wretchedness of the academic job market; DNA analysis; blended families; the Completion Agenda; and, of course, tropical gardening.

Do you have an ideal reader in mind when you write?
I write books that I enjoy and am proud of. My ideal reader is anyone who will read my books!

Please describe your writing routine.
I try to get my actual outlining and writing done first thing in the morning, when my brain is the freshest. Less cognitively taxing tasks, like updating my blog or reading email, are done in the afternoon.

What advice do you give new writers just starting out?
1) To calibrate your unconscious, read as many well-written books as you can get your hands on, and avoid letting bad writing into your brain. 2) Have a web presence. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but there should be somewhere online where readers can find you and figure out how to buy your books. 3) Don’t try to edit as you write. Just get something on the page and fix it later. Revising is much easier than first-time writing. 4) Find and support other authors in your genre. Whether it’s co-promotions, box sets, or just friendship and moral support, authors can be a great resource for one another.

More about The Black Thumb:
When a violent death disrupts the monthly meeting of the Pua Kala Garden society, Professor Molly Barda has no intention of playing amateur detective. But Molly’s not just a witness – the victim is Molly’s house guest and grad-school frenemy. And Molly quickly finds to her dismay that her interest in the murder of the stylish and self-centered Melanie Polewski is more than just … academic.

Grab your copy here: [amazon text=Amazon]

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How to connect with Frankie:
Webpage: http://www.frankiebow.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Frankie_Bow
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frankie.bow.1
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/frankie-bow/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7809288.Frankie_Bow

Cracked to Death

Posted on August 25, 2016 by Annette Drake

Cheryl Hollon visits my page today to talk about her new cozy mystery, Cracked to Death. Cheryl now writes full-time after she left an engineering career of designing and building military flight simulators in amazing countries such as England, Wales, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, and India. Fulfilling the dream of a lifetime, she combines her love of writing with a passion for creating glass art. In the small glass studio behind her house in St. Petersburg, Florida, Cheryl and her husband design, create, and produce fused glass, stained glass, and painted glass artworks. Visit her online at http://cherylhollon.com, on Facebook or on Twitter @CherylHollon.

More about Cracked to Death:
When a treasure hunt leads to deadly plunder, it’s up to glass shop owner Savannah Webb and her trusty investigative posse to map out the true motives of a killer.
It’s the dog days of summer in St. Petersburg, Florida, and Webb’s Glass Shop proprietor Savannah Webb has an eco-friendly plan to help locals escape the heat – a recyclable bottle-crafting workshop taught by reticent store manager Amanda Blake. Turns out, the class is a bigger smash than expected, thanks in part to a pair of staggeringly old bottles brought in by snorkeler Martin Lane.
Linked to a storied pirate shipwreck, the relics definitely pique Savannah’s interest. But intrigue turns to shock when Martin’s lifeless body washes ashore the next morning, another glass artifact tucked in his dive bag. With cell phone records connecting Amanda to the drowning, Savannah must voyage through unchartered territory to exonerate her colleague and capture the twisted criminal behind Martin’s death.

Grab your copy here: [amazon text=Amazon&asin=B0165HVIRK]

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Die, Die Birdie

Posted on August 23, 2016 by Annette Drake

J.R. Ripley visits my page today to share news of his newest release: Die, Die Birdie. J.R. Ripley is the pen name of Glenn Meganck, the critically acclaimed author of the Tony Kozol mystery series. As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, he has chaired the Edgar committee for Best Original Paperback novel and served on the Best Short Story Committee. As a member of the International Association of Crime Writers, he has served on the Hammett Award committee for Best Novel. When not writing books, Glenn is writing songs, often singing them to the consternation of his audience and neighbors, or involved in one of his many passions, none of which have involved any of the dead bodies that seem to keep cropping up in his mysteries. For more information about him, visit glennmeganck.com.

More about Die, Die Birdie:
For Amy Simms, hatching a birding shop in her hometown of Ruby Lake, North Carolina, hasn’t exactly been a breeze. But could a deadly discovery clip her wings for good?
It’s just days before Amy plans to open Birds & Bees on the first floor of her creaky Victorian house, but delayed seed shipments have prevented the fledgling owner from stocking her shelves. And it doesn’t help that Amy’s best friend and business partner is out of town indefinitely. With locals skeptical about the niche shop taking flight, the last thing Amy needs now is a dead man in her storeroom-or for a crotchety tenant to catch her holding a bloody bird feeder hook over his body…
Pigeonholed as a leading murder suspect by police and lacking a solid alibi, Amy’s delving into the victim’s ugly past and buzzing around Ruby Lake for clues on his killer…before she ends up like so many of her beloved feathery friends – trapped behind bars!
Grab your copy here: [amazon text=Amazon&asin=B018CGZ1J8]
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The Bluebonnet Betrayal

Posted on August 4, 2016 by Annette Drake

Author Marty Wingate visits my pages today to talk about her new cozy mystery, The Bluebonnet Betrayal. Welcome, Marty.

Why do you write cozy mysteries?
Someone has said that authors write what they want to read, and for the most part that’s true for me. I love the traditional and cozy mysteries because they are always so much more than a puzzle to solve. There’s the setting, which is important to me (and so I’ve made it important in my books) and the characters’ stories. I have been known to begin reading a series, like it, and then pick up subsequent books and scan them, looking for mention of my favorite character from the previous book! I like the overall series arc the main character has (or should have).

Please tell us about your book. What ideas or images inspired this novel?
The Bluebonnet Betrayal takes place at one of my favorite yearly events, the Chelsea Flower Show in London. This is the fifth book in the Potting Shed series and Pru Parke (American gardener who has moved to England) gets an out-of-the-blue email from a long-ago co-worker at the Dallas Arboretum asking Pru if she would help the Austin Rock Garden Society build a display at Chelsea. How can she say no? Once committed, however, she discovers back-biting, resentments, and jealousies among the contractor, designer, and the Austin women who show up to work. The murder is particularly difficult for Pru and so it’s a sort of campaign for her to help solve it.

Do you have an ideal reader in mind when you write? If so, please describe that reader.
My reader is someone who likes to travel – I think that’s part of the allure of a series set abroad) and enjoys the outdoors. It isn’t necessary to be a fantastic gardener, but gardens do figure prominently. So does food – Pru loves a good meal, but she is not a cook. Also, my reader likes a mystery, but doesn’t necessarily need a detailed description of someone’s brains being blown to bits. Know what I mean?

Please describe your writing routine.
I write new material mostly in the morning, and I rewrite and edit some in the afternoons. I write or attend to the story in some way every day. It becomes a part of me, so that I am never at a loss for something to do while waiting in a line or sitting on a bus or train. I have a story in my head, and I’m my own entertainment.

What advice do you give new writers just starting out?
Write. Don’t know where to begin? Don’t think of it as a beginning – the first words you put down could end up in chapter three. Read. Read books that you enjoy (I steer clear of books I’m “supposed” to read). Absorb all those wonderful words. Talk about writing. Talk about story arcs and character development. Do this with friends, or at writing workshops. Join a writing group or just go out regularly for coffee with one writing friend.

More about The Bluebonnet Betrayal:
Pru’s life in England is coming full circle. A Texas transplant, she’s married to the love of her life, thriving in the plum gardening position she shares with her long-lost brother, and prepping a Chelsea Flower Show exhibit featuring the beloved bluebonnets of the Texas hill country. Technically, Twyla Woodford, the president of a gardening club in the Lone Star State, is in charge of the London event, but Pru seems to be the one getting her hands dirty. When they finally do meet, Pru senses a kindred spirit—until Twyla turns up dead.
Although Twyla’s body was half buried under a wall in their display, Pru remains determined to mount a spectacular show. Twyla would have insisted. So Pru recruits her husband, former Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Pearse, to go undercover and do a bit of unofficial digging into Twyla’s final hours. If Pru has anything to say about it, this killer is going to learn the hard way not to mess with Texas.

Grab your copy here: [amazon text=Amazon&asin=B017QLSIU4]

How to connect with Marty:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/martywingateauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/martywingate
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/453259.Marty_Wingate
Website: http://www.martywingate.com
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/marthawingate/

Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/Marty-Wingate/e/B001JS1AIS

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