I love a good “impossible” mystery setup. Whether it’s a locked-door mystery (i.e., the mystery takes place in a locked room or house), a framing of an innocent person, or some other setup that seems impossible to overcome, they’re some of my favorite types of mysteries. In the case of Red Hot Murder, it’s the …
Hands down, the Secrets of Redemption series has been the most challenging of all my writing. It has also provided me with the most breakthroughs. (Isn’t that the way it always goes? We learn more from our challenges and failures than from our successes or what’s easy.) In March 2015, roughly six months after the …
The Story Behind the Story: “The Girl Who Wasn’t There” Read More »
Growing up, watching mystery and detective television shows, like Murder She Wrote and Matlock, was a staple in my house. And this time of year was always my favorite because they would usually incorporate some sort of ghost story or unexplained supernatural element to the mystery. (Of course, all the loose ends would also be …
The Story Behind the Story: “The Murder of Sleepy Hollow” Read More »
Five friends go into the woods. Only four return. I’ve always had a soft spot for “locked door” mysteries or mysteries with a limited cast of suspects. (A locked door mystery is one that takes place in a limited location, like a house or a single room, with a limited cast of suspects. While getting …
The Story Behind the Story: “Murder Among Friends” Read More »
All my life, I had loved reading fairy tales and myths. As a child, some relative (likely one of my grandmothers but I can’t remember now) had bought me the original Grimm’s fairy tales, which I devoured. (I’m not sure if whoever bought it realized how dark some of them were, but quite honestly, it …
A few years back, I discovered that if a lake is cold enough, and deep enough, it doesn’t give up its dead. In other words, if someone drowns in that cold, deep lake, their bodies will rarely surface. Needless to day, the mystery author in me was delighted to learn such a morbid fact, especially …
The Story Behind the Story: “Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders” Read More »
In late 2020 or early 2021 (I can’t remember the exact timing anymore), a fellow author friend of mine approached me about doing a list building mystery anthology featuring female detectives or sleuths. It would be available for the month of October 2021 for free in exchange for an email. After that, the anthology would …
When I was growing up, this was my all-time favorite salad in the world. My grandma used to make it for me. Unfortunately she died before I thought to ask for the recipe, but this is what I recreated based on memory. As part of the reason why I’m writing cozies is because of my …
