August 6: Judy is the randomly selected winner! Congratulations. And thanks to everyone for entering! Lou Perlman here, from the Country Store Mysteries by Maddie Day (aka Edith Maxwell) When I met Robbie Jordan, I was out on a thirty-mile bike ride with a few of my fellow grad
students from Indiana University. We stopped into Pans 'N Pancakes, her country store restaurant, and the rest is history. I helped her find her Italian dad, and in Maddie Day's next book, When the Grits Hit the Fan, she helps clear my name of murder! That's what friendship is all about.
It all started at one of our Sociology Department Friday night winter dinners in Robbie's store. A prof in the department is a pretty unpleasant guy, but when Robbie and I went snowshoeing the next morning, we sure as heck didn't expect to find him dead. And then...well, I'll let you read the story yourself next February. But in the meantime, Maddie is giving away a copy of the first two books, Flipped for Murder and Grilled for Murder to one commenter here. Ask the author a question - any question! before August 5 at midnight, and you'll be entered in the drawing. Be sure to indicate your email address so she can find you. And happy summer!
Edith Maxwell writes the Quaker Midwife Mysteries and the Local Foods Mysteries, the Country Store Mysteries (as Maddie Day), and award-winning short crime fiction. Her short story, “A Questionable Death,” was nominated for a 2016 Agatha Award for Best Short Story. Maxwell is Vice-President of Sisters in Crime New England and Clerk of Amesbury Friends Meeting. She lives north of Boston with her beau and three cats, and blogs with the other Wicked Cozy Authors. You can find her on Facebook, twitter, Pinterest, and at her web site, edithmaxwell.com.
Well my question is one I keep asking. Am I allowed to enter to win your book even though I live in the UK please? If the answer is yes then my email is [email protected]
Lou, there seems to be a pattern of going outdoors on an innocent outing (cycling, snowshoeing) and finding a body. Maybe you and Robbie should stay home to avoid finding body 3? Thanks for the chance to win! grace dot koshida at gmail dot com
Maddie, I love the clever titles in this series. Is that something you have input on as an author? Thanks for the chance to win!
JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com
I blogged about it here: https://wickedcozyauthors.com/2014/08/21/ediths-got-some-news/
Briefly, I used to live in that part of Indiana and had friends who had rehabbed an old general store into a bed and breakfast. Bingo! The idea was born.
Only generally. My editor asks for my ideas. I tell him in prose what season it is and my ideas for the cover, and then I send him the link for the Pinterest board I set up for that book. For GRITS it's here: https://www.pinterest.com/edithmaxwell/when-the-grits-hit-the-fan/
Sometimes the artists come through with my vision, sometimes they don't! But Kensington does not pass a draft by me.
Not hard, really, Judy, although I do have to noodle it around some. Country Store #4 is anchored to the real National Maple Syrup Festival in Brown County, Indiana in March - so then I came up with a victim and suspects connected that!
Depends on the book, Debby. For this series I visit the area once a year and listen to the local dialect. I always am checking out new poisons, reading about breakfast foods, talking to small restaurant owners. But my historical Quaker Midwife Mysteries are another research department altogether!
Good day Edith. What is the oddest thing you have researched and included in one of your
books? I love your Quaker Midwife Mysteries and I'm sure I will enjoy this series too. [email protected]
Thanks, Robin. Not sure about odd, but scariest might be that two of those vials of liquid nicotine that you can buy ANYWHERE for vaping can kill an adult. Seriously!
I am always trying to deepen my story and characters in the way that Julia Spencer-Fleming and Louise Penny write. Gorgeous writing, incredible storytelling.
Have you done any snowshoeing yourself? I think it looks like fun, but I'm probably to uncoordinated to do it. Thanks for the contest. [email protected]
No, but my father and all his ancestors were, right back to the founder of Indiana University, my g-g-g grandfather - and I earned a PhD there in the early 80s!
I haven't read any of your books yet, but I would like to ask if you like to put animals like cats or dogs into your stories? I noticed a cat on the cover on the book above. lclee59 at centurylink dot net.
I always love books that have cats on the cover. Do you have any input on designing your covers? Thank you for this generous giveaway. pgenest57 at aol dot come
My editor asks for my ideas. I tell him in prose what season it is and my ideas for the cover, and then I send him the link for the Pinterest board I set up for that book. For GRITS it's here: https://www.pinterest.com/edithmaxwell/when-the-grits-hit-the-fan/
Sometimes the artists come through with my vision, sometimes they don't! But Kensington does not pass a draft by me.
I have grits on the brain, having just had some awesome cheese grits for brunch the other day. Do you like grits? It seems like there is no middle ground with them, people either really like them or really dislike them. Obviously I love the title of this book -- do you have a title in mind when you start writing it, or does that come later? [email protected]
Since you write more than one series, is the research hugely time consuming? Grits is not a favorite of everyone, do you like them? annettena (at) yahoo (dot) com
Do you sit around thinking of how to kill someone and get away with it? Seems like you have to in order to be a mystery writer... even if it is a cozy. [email protected]
Do you ever have more than one story in your mind? And do your stories have "a mind of their own" as you are writing them and go places that you didn't think they would? You are a new author to me, and I LOVE your covers! Can't wait to read these! lelandandbeckyatreagandotcom
I always have more than one story in my mind, and my favorite part of writing is when a character does something I had NO idea she was going to do, no idea why - and I wrote! I have to keep typing to discover what comes next.
The Country Store mysteries are different in that they're set in southern Indiana in a country store breakfast and lunch restaurant. The stories are smart and funny and a good suspenseful read, according to reviewers!
30 mile bike rides in Indiana make me think of the movie Breaking Away! Are you a cyclist? If so, do prefer leisurely bike rides or more of a fast-paced race? You're series sounds like a fun read, thanks for the chance! Nicole [email protected]
I'm totally a leisure on-the-flat rider. But my younger son thinks nothing of suiting up and going for a fifty-mile ride, so he was my consultant for the cycling part of these books.
Really, any of the Wicked Cozy Authors are my favorites: Julianne Holmes, Jessie Crockett, Barb Ross, Sherry Harris, and Liz Mugavero. Try them! And stop by our blog (https://wickedcozyauthors.com/) any weekday for mystery with a New England accent.
I just finished the first book in the series and I loved it. I have several cats so I really love stories with cats. The fundraiser in the book was so great because the townspeople really donated for it. Do you have any cats? Kristi Gilbert [email protected]
Thanks! Yes, Birdy is my junior cat. Preston is our cat who stars in my Local Foods Mysteries. And Christabel is our girl, who will make her debut in the second Quaker Midwife mystery next April!
Is there any character in your books that you find yourself relating to more than others? I only started reading cozies less than a year ago, so I haven't gotten around to a lot of different series, but yours looks like one I would enjoy. Thank you for the chance to win.
I've had people I don't know send me pictures of my books from the New Arrivals table at their library, or the Barnes and Noble Cozy Mystery section. That's a big thrill.
You write three series, do you finish one book before you start one in a different series, or do you have other books being written at the same time? If so, how do you keep track of the storyline and the people? I Enjoy your books, thanks for the chance.
Happily anticipating the next book, and now thinking about snowshoes. I believe I tried them once when I lived in Minnesota, and they were HARD, trickier than Nordic skiing even. How do you manage them?
Almost none - except Great Uncle Albert's new girlfriend in the Local Foods Mysteries (starting at Farmed and Dangerous) - she is my late mother, who died six months before my first book came out. I love remembering her in those stories.
Hi there Edith/Maddie! Love this series & I'm hungry for more! If you could stage a book series in any country other than the great U.S.A., what country would that be? Thanks for a chance at winning!
sxygrndma48{at}yahoo{dot}com
Thanks, Kelly. Some come from phrases I've overheard, some from my Hoosier sister, and some from other Indiana friends, and some from a couple of online sites citing colorful southern phrases!
I didn't read all the other questions, but I've always wondered how much input an author has in her book title and cover. Keep writing!! [email protected]
Looking forward to reading your latest release. Congratulations. I bought the first book in your LOCAL Foods mystery series and it was great. I also love the cover of this release which would definitely be a book that would catch my eye in a bookstore. Thank you for the giveaway. Will keep my fingers crossed.
Why do you write your books under different names? I LOVED the last one of yours that I read in a different series, and the Country Store series sounds great too! Have a good day! Patty [email protected]
Gosh what a great idea, loved reading the questions and your answers, like our own little session with you. Do you or someone in you publishing company ask for other authors or people to write comment on t eh covers and inside of book? Georgia
queenvictoria50 (at) aol (dot) com
Thanks! For the first book in a series, I usually solicit cover blurbs. But the publisher also gleans critical reviews and other glowing endorsements. I'm lucky to have a lot of them.
I've been writing my whole life, but didn't start writing fiction seriously until about 1994. And then, yes - my goal was to become a published author with reader who love my stories. It took a little while, but it worked!
Apologies if someone already asked this, but I can't scroll through all these questions at work.
Did you live in Indiana? I used to live in Northwest Indiana and my cousin went to IU. I'll have to add this to my TBR pile.
kkcochran(at)Hotmail(dot)com
Yes. My father and all his ancestors were, right back to the founder of Indiana University, my g-g-g grandfather - and I earned a PhD in Blomington in the early 80s!
I know that you love to cook and I'm just learning how to cook because my mother never really taught me. Most of the recipes come from the cozy mysteries that I read ( my Husband is always excited when I get a new book). What are some tips and tricks that you can offer for a beginning cook? Thanks for the change to win. [email protected]
That's a big question, Brittany. I'd say start with a recipe you like, and then vary it. Use local produce in season, or change up the seasonings. It's a start!
What are your favorite cozy series? I was also going to ask about your hobbies, but I see you mentioned cooking, reading, and gardening. Any others?
catbooks72(at)gmail(dot)com
I love your Quaker Midwife Series! I put Flipped and Grilled on my goodreads must read list. Have you ever been sleeping when in your dreams you see a new plot but when you wake up in the morning it is gone. But it seems so good while you dreamed it? Merry [email protected]
Thanks! I have had such vivid dreams (like the murder of the princess of Norway) I think I should write them down into stories- but they are never set in my books.
I love cozy mysteries! I'm curious about the setting in the Country Store mysteries. Why are they set in Bloomington? I want to read them because my parents and sister graduated from IU. suemngirl(at)yahoo(dot)com
Sue, they are set in fictional South Lick in Brown County, just to the east of Bloomington. I got a PhD from IU - and my g-g-g grandfather founded the school! So the area was an easy choice.
Trick question! I've been paid for my non-fiction writing since about 1992 but was writing pieces before that, and lots of academic articles even prior. I sold my first short story for a very small sum in 2004 (I won a local fiction contest when I was 9 and was paid $2!), and my first four mystery novels in 2012, so I guess you can say four years. I left the day job three years ago.
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Well my question is one I keep asking. Am I allowed to enter to win your book even though I live in the UK please? If the answer is yes then my email is [email protected]
ReplyDeleteYes, you may, Carol. I didn't restrict the giveaway to US only. The postage is a little more, but I like to spread the love around!
DeleteThank you
DeleteLou, there seems to be a pattern of going outdoors on an innocent outing (cycling, snowshoeing) and finding a body. Maybe you and Robbie should stay home to avoid finding body 3? Thanks for the chance to win! grace dot koshida at gmail dot com
ReplyDeleteYou might be onto something, Grace!
Delete