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visiting around and about, wandering here and there... |
For quite a while during the 2020 lockdown I was contemplating what to write. My Sea Witch pirate adventures were on hold (because I wasn't happy with the company publishing them [less than acceptable standard] - an issue now sorted, but that's another story) I also wanted to write something different.
Stuck for ideas I turned to reading instead, and came across the entertaining Sophie Sayers cosy mystery series by the wonderful writer, Debbie Young.
I loved them. Bright, cheery, engaging characters - and yes a murder or two, but nothing gory or frightening, and limited 'police procedure' - these were stories about the main characters and their friends who lived in the imaginary Cotswold village of Wendlebury Barrow. I say imaginary: the village is based on Debbie's own village which one day I'll get to visit when Covid enables outings again. (I was supposed to have attended the annual Book Festival in 2020.)
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| Sophie and Hector at Wendlebury Barrow |
But Sophie set me thinking. I could write something similar. A cosy mystery ('cozy' in the US). But what?
"Write what you know" is oft given sage advice. Well, I knew about working in a public library. I'd done that from 1969 to 1981. I had a mine of anecdotes and experiences. I know nothing about police procedure though... but wait, neither does Sophie Sayers!
The germ grew, flourished and blossomed. My character popped into my mind. Jan. Jan Christopher. She gets fed up with people asking her what 'Jan' is short for - Janet, Janice?*
* read the book to find out!
Her parents are dead (the plot of a future story) she was adopted by her Aunt Madge and Uncle Toby - he is her dad's brother. And he's a Detective Chief Inspector. Then Detective Constable Laurie Walker walked into my mind... and I remembered an old lady who used to come into the library every day to surreptitiously cut out the food coupons from the tabloid newspapers...
So A Mirror Murder was born. A story set in 1971 in and around South Chingford Library where I used to work. I published it myself under my own Taw River Press, and thoroughly enjoyed the whole process.
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| https://getbook.at/MirrorMurder |
The one regret: I had no decent photographs of the library. The building is still there, but it is now offices. Waltham Forest, the administrative London Borough having the lack of foresight (OK, stupidity!) to keep their libraries open at all cost. From what I gather the building is due to be pulled down to make way for housing. So I jumped on the assistance of another good friend author of mine, Alison Morton helping me out.
She was visiting in the area. "Any chance of a few photos, Alison?" She obliged tenfold with some wonderful photos which will appear as the series progresses in various marketing graphics. Thank you Alison - you're a star of supergiant magnitude. Betelgeuse status!
Here's a couple...
BUT here's what those of you who have read A Mirror Murder are waiting for! Episode 2 of Jan's Cosy Mystery adventures!
It is to be released in November (e-book available for pre-order in October) It is called A Mystery Of Murder and is set in Devon, Christmas 1971:
‘Had I known what was to happen soon after we arrived at Mr and Mrs Walker’s lovely old West Country house, my apprehension about spending Christmas in Devon would have dwindled to nothing.’
What happened to Laurie’s ex-girlfriend? Where is the vicar’s wife? Who took those old photographs? And will the farmer up the lane ever mend those broken fences?
Set in 1971, this is the second Jan Christopher Cosy Mystery. Join her (and an owl and a teddy bear) in Devon for a Christmas to remember.
Will the discovery of a murder
spoil Christmas for Jan Christopher and her boyfriend DS Laurie Walker – or
will it bring them closer together?
And here for the first time in public is the cover!!!
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| pre-order links coming soon! |
the first in the series, A Mirror Murder is available now
from an Amazon near you
Ooh, looking forward to reading the new book, Helen - it sounds like the perfect Christmas read! I'm thrilled that my Sophie Sayers books inspired you to turn to writing cosy mystery, (although I loved the Sea Witch stories too), and as I have very fond memories from the public library I used to attend as a child (now sadly no more following a fire), I shall enjoy lingering in your fictitious library instead!
ReplyDeleteThank you Debbie. I really enjoy the Sophie stories (loved your latest as well!) I don't know if you're the same, but I'm finding that anything everyday occurring I'm wondering how I can turn it into a murder situation. We had our drinking water pump cleaned yesterday and I found myself chatting about how long would it take for the water to turn funny if there was a body in our well!
DeleteWow! A great cover and I can't wait to read book 2.
ReplyDeleteThank you Pauline - another Cathy Helms of www.avalongraphics.org of course!
DeleteGoodness, thank you so much for the mention, Helen. It was a pleasure to do the photos for you as were were staying only ten minutes away. It's a lovely building and the sun was shining. I was lucky to get a peek inside and the big room must have been a pleasurable place for thousands and thousands of readers.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the next Jan mystery!
(apologies for delay in replying) Thanks Alison - it was a nice, light, airy building - mind you, the office and staff room were small and dingy!
DeleteReally looking forward to this - solved a lot of 'what to get people for Christmas' dilemmas! Local libraries just aren't what they were, but neither are we. I can't remember the last time I took my kids to ours, the drastic cuts following the 2009 crash ended that pleasure as it was so rarely open. I spent most of my free time as a kid in a library, be it the school or local. And standing outside the one at my brother's school begging people to go in for me! It was worth it - got my first taste of Sharon Penman from there.
ReplyDeleteah yes - that's my plan: release for the Christmas shopping ideas!
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