Clea Simon's Blog, page 37
January 3, 2019
Happy New Book (virtual party edition)
Today kicks off my month-long A Spell of Murder book tour. I’ll be guest posting, chatting with readers, doing a few giveaways, and otherwise just trying to make this month a little bit cozier. Most of these blogs are new to me, so I look forward to meeting these bloggers and their readers with you. Thank you, Silver Dagger Book Tours for setting this up!
Here’s the full schedule with links (most of these links won’t work until the A Spell of Murder day):
Jan 4
kickoff at Silver Dagger Book Tours
Jan 5
Jan 6
Valerie Ullmer | Romance Author
Jan 7
Jan 8
Jan 9
Jan 10
Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’
Jan 11
Jan 12
Jan 13
3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too!
Jan 14
Jan 15
Jan 16
Jan 17
Books all things paranormal and romance
Jan 18
Jan 19
Jan 20
Jan 21
Jan 22
Jan 23
Jan 24
Jan 25
James Quinlan Meservy – Author
Jan 26
Jan 27
Jan 28
Jan 29
Jan 30
Jan 31
Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read
Feb 1
Feb 2
Feb 3
Paranormal Palace of Pleasures
Feb 4
January 1, 2019
Happy New Book!
Bookstores are so packed in December (yay!) that they’re hesitant to host events. So that means Porter Square Books and I decided to hold off on my party until tomorrow – January 3! I’ll be chatting about A Spell of Murder, reading a little, and signing copies. But basically I’ll be celebrating with readers and friends and all who might like a cat cozy as the coldest days of winter begin. Won’t you join us? There will be cake! (The event is free, of course, and starts at 7 p.m.)
If you can’t make it, but would still like a signed copy, please contact Porter Square Books at 617-491-2220 or online here. Harvard Book Store also has signed copies.
December 31, 2018
Happy new year!
Wishing you all a happy, healthy new year, filled with joy and warmth!
December 30, 2018
FIVE QUESTIONS with Dave Zeltserman
How does a book start for you?
My first two books started too late into the plot, and I had to go back and start them earlier. Since then I’ve developed a pretty good feel for picking the right place to start my books (and short fiction). When I look back at them, they all start right before something big is about to happen. Our job as writers is to get the reader invested in the story right away, so we want to drop them into an intriguing scene that will want to make them keep reading.
Who in your latest book has surprised you most – and why?
I have two latest books:
HUSK
, a horror novel written under my own name, and my
CRUEL
written under my pseudonym Jacob Stone, and they both came out last October.The character who surprised me the most in HUSK was Brittany. I knew she was going to be trouble from the beginning, but she surpassed my expectations. In CRUEL, it would have to be my hit man. Somehow I unleashed my inner Richard Stark in writing that character.
When and/or where is your latest book set and is there a story behind that setting?
HUSK starts off deep in the backwoods of New Hampshire and ends up in New York City. For some reason, whenever I need a place in my books where terrible things happen, I always gravitate to New Hampshire.
CRUEL, like the other Morris Brick thrillers I’ve written, takes place in LA.
When I was trying to decide where to set my thriller series, I needed a a city large enough to accommodate a new serial killer every six months, and that seemed to narrow it down to either New York or LA. I chose LA because John Lutz had set his terrific Quinn series in New York. An added benefit to choosing LA was using Hollywood and the desire for celebrity as a thread that runs through these books.What are you working on now?
I have two more books scheduled to come out next year–a truly bizarre noirish mashup of hardboiled PI and fantasy titled EVERYBODY LIES IN HELL and my fifth Morris Brick thriller UNLEASHED. Right now I’ve just finished up something completely different for me–a charming fantasy/adventure novel titled THE TENTH WISH, which I am planning to put out myself as an ebook.
Which question didn’t I ask you that I should have?
To steal from Stephen Colbert: is a hotdog a sandwich?
H! Thanks, Dave! You need to read Dave Zeltserman! Find out more here: https://www.davezeltserman.com/
December 27, 2018
Like Rita Mae Brown?
Library Journal weighs in on my A Spell of Murder, recommending it for fans of Rita Mae Brown and Sofie Kelly!
“Becca’s cats mean well, but when Harriet, the eldest of the three, conjures a pillow, Becca, a member of a coven, believes she did it. Youngest cat Clara is worried the pillow will create problems. Becca lacks self-esteem and needs money after being laid off from her job as a researcher. Now that it appears she can cast spells, the coven’s only male, Trent, shows more interest in her. Some of the women want to confide in Becca, which draws the attention of the police when she finds the body of Suzanne, another member of the coven. But it’s only then that Becca learns her ex was seeing Suzanne. While Becca attempts to question people and find the killer, Clara and her feline sisters use their powers to follow and protect their human. Although Becca is a weak character, the anthropomorphized cats are amusing as they argue, cast spells, and behave as if they truly were sisters. VERDICT: Simon specializes in mysteries, such as Cross My Path, which combine cats and the paranormal. The talking, spell-casting felines might appeal to readers who suspend disbelief for Rita Mae Brown’s “Mrs. Murphy” books or Sofie Kelly’s “Magical Cats” mysteries.” – Library Journal Dec. 1. 2018
December 23, 2018
FIVE QUESTIONS with Marilyn Levinson
Happy Christmas Eve to those who celebrate! I’ve got a holiday-themed mystery for you today!
Getting to moderate a panel is one of the unsung joys of conferences. Sure, you don’t get to tout your own books quite as much. But you get to lead the discussion, hear what your peers (and the audience) has to say. Plus, you get books to read! I confess, I hadn’t read Marilyn’s work when I was given her as a panelist. Her publisher sent me her DEATH OVERDUE, which features a haunted library – with (of course) a most helpful ghost librarian – and I was hooked. Now she’s got READ AND GONE out, just in time for the holidays, and I cannot wait. Grab a copy for the holiday – or give one for Boxing Day! It is a pleasure to introduce her to you now:
How do you start a book?
It varies. Sometimes I open with a short narrative reflecting my sleuth’s state of mind or I begin with a conversation between my sleuth and another character. I always include the locale, the situation, a quick sketch of the world of my story so that the reader knows exactly where he/she is, and then I move onto an event or conflict that leads to an argument or an explosion and . . . murder.
Who in your latest book has surprised you the most—and why?
Carrie, my sleuth. I love seeing how she’s matured as a professional and as a caring person. When Carrie first gets a job in the Clover Ridge Library, she considers it temporary like all the jobs she’s had since leaving college. She dresses Goth—hair dyed purple, black tights, short skirts and Doc Martens. She cleans up her act when she becomes Head of Programs and Events and proves to be excellent at her job. In the third book in the series which I’ve just completed, Carrie becomes involved in a project to help the homeless in Clover Ridge. She is also involved in a serious romance for the first time in her life. She has made a life for herself in Clover Ridge, where she is surrounded by people who care about her as she continues to solve mysteries.
When and/or where is your latest book set and is there a story behind that setting?
This book like all the books in the Haunted Library mystery series is set in Clover Ridge, CT. It is a town I made up loosely based on a real Connecticut town I once visited.
What are you working on now?
I just finished the third book in the series. I will soon begin the fourth. Carrie’s mother and Tom, her actor husband, come to Clover Ridge because he’s in a movie that’s being filmed in Clover Ridge. I look forward to starting work on it very soon.
Which question didn’t I ask you that I should have?
Why did I pick the setting/my sleuth’s profession that I did?
Carrie Singleton, the sleuth in my Haunted Library series, is Head of Programs and Events. I decided on her profession while sitting in my library’s lovely park listening to a fantastic drumming program. Hearing the person in my library in charge of adult events thank the drummer for appearing, I thought, “Wouldn’t that make a wonderful job for a sleuth!” And I’m so glad that I did. These days libraries aren’t just about books. Libraries offer classes and programs, concerts and fairs. Many of the Clover Ridge Library’s events and programs—like the food presentations—are activities I enjoy in my own library. I decided to include a library ghost and a library cat in the series as both Evelyn and Smoky Joe add so much to the series.
Thank you, Marilyn!
Marilyn Levinson writes mysteries, romantic suspense, and novels for kids. As Allison Brook she writes the Haunted Library Mystery series. Other mysteries she’s written are the Golden Age of Mystery Book Club series, the Twin Lakes series, GIVING UP THE GHOST, and her romantic suspense, DANGEROUS RELATIONS. Most of Marilyn’s mysteries take place on Long Island, where she lives.
Her books for young readers include THE DEVIL’S PAWN, NO BOYS ALLOWED, RUFUS AND MAGIC RUN AMOK, which was awarded a “Children’s Choice,” GETTING BACK TO NORMAL & AND DON’T BRING JEREMY.
Marilyn loves traveling, reading, knitting, doing Sudoku, and visiting with her grandchildren, Olivia and Jack, on FaceTime. You can find her on Goodreads: http://bit.ly/Goodreads_MarilynLevinson,Twitter: @MarilynLevinson Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/marilev/ Facebook: http://bit.ly/MarilynLevinson_Facebook
December 19, 2018
Talking Wicca, cats, and cozies…
I was interviewed by Mystery Scene magazine!Thursday, 13 December 2018 19:51Clea SimonRobin Agnew
Clea Simon is the author of four, mostly cozy, mystery series and one standalone thriller. Her latest book, A Spell of Murder, is about witch cats and is set in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her books have a sparkle and edge to them that’s delightful to discover in a cozy.
Mystery Scene: You didn’t start your career as a mystery writer, but as a journalist. What brought about the change?
Clea Simon: Honestly? I think I needed the time to build up my courage, as well as my writing chops. When you’re doing journalism or writing nonfiction (I wrote three nonfiction books before my first mystery), you can tell yourself that the writing doesn’t matter. You’re giving people information. But when you’re writing fiction, all there is is your writing—it’s all your imagination. It takes a lot of confidence to believe that my writing alone would be enough.
Specifically, what happened was that after my third nonfiction book, The Feline Mystique: On the Mysterious Connection Between Women and Cats, came out, Kate Mattes—the owner of the much-missed Kate’s Mystery Books—invited me to come sign at her annual mystery holiday party. I pointed out that my book wasn’t a mystery, and she said, “Believe it or not, Clea, there’s a huge overlap between women who love cats and mystery readers.” So I did and I signed along with dozens of other authors and I had a blast. And at the end of the night, Kate said to me, “You should write a mystery.” It was like she was giving me permission. And so I did!
Why mysteries? Were you a fan?
Very much so! I’ve always loved mysteries, from my Encyclopedia Brown days on. That and historical fiction, but I know a lot more about digging out facts (thanks to my years as a journalist) than I do about history, so…
Your early books were nonfiction, including one about cats—so what prompted the interest in cats? It’s obviously a passion that winds through your novels.
I’m not sure, actually. I’ve always loved cats. Maybe because as a writer I spend so much time alone except for the cat. And of course I talk to my cat. Everyone does, and so…sometimes the cat talks back!
You have now written five series. What have you learned about writing and publishing during that time?
Hmm, good question. I’ve learned that it is important to get something on paper, even if it’s lousy. You can’t revise if you don’t have it on paper. And along with that, I’ve learned that you have to revise. You have to be merciless. Do whatever is necessary to make the book better, even if it hurts!
While the book coming out now is also about cats, this one, A Spell of Murder, is about witch cats. Talk about witchcraft a bit if you would, what you know about it, how you researched it, etc.
I have dabbled in Wicca for years. At one point, I was considering a nonfiction book about it. When I was a kid, I made up a religion in which I worshipped trees, so it seems kind of right. I like the feminism and environmentalism of it—the idea of cosmic balance. And I have friends who practice, so that helps.
You also have a straight-up thriller that came out last November. What brought about that book? What made you want to write about the club scene?
World Enough was the final realization of a book I started 30 years ago, when I was a rock music critic. I kind of found myself in the punk rock scene—it was a very communal arts subculture that gave me a structure and a home and several lifelong friends—and I wanted to write about it. But at that point I didn’t have the chops, nor did I have perspective. So when I went back to that early manuscript and basically tore it apart, I realized that one of the things I wanted to write about was my longing for community—and how much we fool ourselves when we need to. It’s also kind of about looking back on youth from middle age. Fun stuff—with rock and roll!
I was always a fan of your Pru Marlowe, pet psychic, books, which sounds so cheesy when you write it down like that, but the books aren’t cheesy at all, and they have quite a bit of edge. Can you talk about that series a bit?
Sure! I think the key to that is that in my heart, I’m as much Wallis (the crotchety tabby) as Pru. Wallis is the one looking on and cutting Pru down a bit, whereas Pru is trying to be tougher than she is. They both need each other. I love that series because it’s really about them working out their relationship and boundaries as much as anything. Plus, I get to research and write about different animals with each book!
Can you also talk about your Blackie and Care series? Interesting concept.
Blackie and Care started as a Sherlock Holmes pastiche. What if Holmes dies and was reincarnated as a black cat? And what if he hooked up with a former Irregular, a street waif whom he had employed? Only, of course, the Irregular is a girl so…. I guess she’s me, feeling lost and alone in a scary world with only her cat for company. OK, I’ve probably said too much!
It annoys me that cozy writers are often dismissed as fluff when many of you include very serious things in your books along with the fun parts. Do you have a comment on that?
Yes, it annoys me too! Writing is writing, and cozies—all genre fiction, really—have some of the most astute characterizations and social commentary in current literature. Only we make it enjoyable, so people discredit it.
Finally, what book was a transformational read for you? What book changed your life as a reader or writer?
Probably J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. It was my first experience of a character’s transformative journey and an immensely emotionally and intellectually satisfying read. Morally too! I still re-read it pretty regularly.
Thanks for having me!
Clea Simon is the author of more than two dozen cozy/amateur sleuth mysteries featuring cats (Blackie and Care mystery series, the Theda Krakow mystery series, the Dulcie Schwartz series, and the Pru Marlowe pet noir series), three nonfiction books, and one punk rock urban noir, World Enough (Severn House). Clea lives in Somerville, Massachusetts, with her husband and one cat. She can be reached at www.cleasimon.com and on Twitter @Clea_Simon.
December 17, 2018
When things go wrong*
This week, a friend – a fellow author – wrote to me, complaining that a lot of press for his new book might not arrive till after the holidays. I did what I could, helping him set up a reading and recommending some media outlets that might publicize the event. This is what we do, after all. I have been helped enormously by friends and by complete strangers, people who offer to read early drafts and others who volunteer their time to peruse and possibly blurb. Authors who share contacts and help spread good news. This is what we do.
Bu sometimes, things simply go wrong. This is what I wanted to tell my friend. And as I encouraged him, I found myself remembering. The time one of my books came out on what appeared to be a flawless autumn Tuesday – until we heard on the news that a plane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers. (Two, maybe three weeks later, I was already made up for my appearance on “Good Morning America” when news of anthrax in Congress got me bumped.) The timing of my first mystery – a quiet late summer day – until we heard that the levees had broken, following a hurricane that hit Louisiana hard. There were the editors who quit, were fired, or went on leave (never to return) in the middle of projects. The book that came out in the U.S. in November – and was out of print the next month. (“Don’t worry. We’ll have it back in print in January,” I was told.)
All of this hurts. Not only does it hurt because we put our heart and soul into these projects, only to see them languish. It hurts because future projects – deals, distribution, etc. – are determined by how our past works have sold. I long ago lost my chance to be a hot new thing. Now I’m simply a working author, plugging along.
In that light, I’ve tried to encourage my friend. Not to be overly optimistic but to help, how I can. And to point out the obvious: We write, because is what we do. And will keep doing, with the help and encouragement and love of our friends and readers.
Thank you, all.
*Also the title of a song by the wonderful Robin Lane, who knows a thing or two about plugging away. Check out the new compilation of her best-known band’s music – including, yes, “When Things Go Wrong,” here.
December 16, 2018
FIVE QUESTIONS with Cathy Ace
I met Cathy Ace in Bristol, England, when we were both attending Crimefest, a wonderful annual convention. Over a boozy dinner on a house boat (fun!), I found myself bonded with this Welsh-turned-Canadian author, and now I seek out her company – and her books! I bet you’ll love her too.
How does a book start for you?
In all honesty the answer to this question differs, depending on the series or 
book in question. For my Cait Morgan Mysteries it’s usually the idea of a method of murder, linked with a particular location; this series features middle-aged, Welsh-Canadian professor of criminal psychology Cait Morgan traveling the world with her “partner in crime” retired Canadian homicide detective Bud Anderson, so it’s natural for a country/area to come to mind alongside a particular type of murder.
However, I find that my WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries come to me in chunks; there is usually more than one case for the softly-boiled female four private eyes to be working on in each book, and I tend to find that the strands of the book have to be woven together across a timeline, from the original “story idea chunks” that I come up with.
My new book, The Wrong Boy, came to me in a very different way, and maybe that’s because – for me – it’s a very different type of book; it “began” with the ideas for the major twists and reversals, which I suppose is good because it’s a pretty twisty tale!
Cait Morgan features in traditional, closed-circle mysteries which are plot driven; the women of the WISE Enquiries Agency work on relatively cozy cases which are quintessentially British and are set in a stately home, and a nearby village, in bucolically rural Wales. Whilst both series are contemporary, they tend to focus on the bright spots in life, rather than the grisliest. This new book is somewhat darker, and has the structure of a suspenseful tale of past secrets impacting the lives of a family, and an entire village, in today’s world where social media impacts almost everyone.
Who in your latest book has surprised you most – and why?
The Wrong Boy is told from multiple points of view, three of whom are Nan, Helen and Sadie Jones – a grandmother, mother, and daughter of a family which has run The Dragon’s Head pub in the ancient hamlet of Rhosddraig in south Wales for generations. Nan is in her late seventies, and not the kindliest of characters; her daughter Helen is struggling to meet the demands of both her overbearing mother and her lively teenaged daughter; Sadie is just your average seventeen year old…desperate to reach the “magic” age of eighteen, and madly in love with a boy in the village who ends up being accused of murder. The three women of the Jones family were all firmly embedded in my mind’s eye at a very early stage – they are the main players in the book, and it’s the relationships between them, and the menfolk in their lives, which dominates the tale. As I was writing, I found myself seeing the world through their eyes (as I hope my readers do/will) and I think I was most surprised to be inside Helen’s skin. “The Sandwich Generation” is having a challenging time of it; their parents are living longer than their grandparents did, and that places huge emotional and physical demands upon them, while they are often also raising children later in their lives than previous generations have done – which put them under even more stress. Sometimes they find themselves stretched to a snapping point. It was an uncomfortable place to be, and I found I needed a bit of a break whenever I’d been inside Helen’s head.
When and where is your latest book set, and is there a story behind that setting?
The setting for The Wrong Boy was my first inspiration: Rhossili is a real village, perched on a staggeringly picturesque land formation on the Gower peninsular, near my home of Swansea in South Wales. It’s the sort of place local families go for a day out, or people travel to from around the world, it’s that well-known. I have spent a great deal of time there over the years, and it’s engrained within my soul. I always wanted to set a book there, and I’m thrilled I finally found the right story to “use” its unique characteristics. I’ve changed its name in the book, because I knew I wanted to examine how the secret lives of people behind net curtains could be upended by both local gossip, and the swirl of publicity that follows the use of social media in service of “a cause” – so it’s a tale about old vs modern methods of undermining an individual, past sins impacting new lives, and how a policeman struggles with his retirement…which all assailed me at once, and which I then had to craft into a story I hope readers feel was worth telling. By using a real setting, but changing its name, I hope I have protected the real residents, because they are much more delightful than the characters who populate my version of the village!
It is, as are all my books, a contemporary setting, but with a great deal of history and mythology woven through it – moreso than in my other books to date (of which there have been a total of twelve across two series). I am an enthusiastic and dedicated researcher of historical data, but I don’t think I’ll ever write a book where the entire setting is historical – I feel too connected to the modern world to be able to erase it from my writing, I fear, so weaving in threads of historical impact is – for me – the best way to go.
What are you working on now?
My immediate concern (in the run-up to December) is the final, final, final editing of The Wrong Boy, but, once that’s entered the production phase I will turn my attention to a collection of four novellas called Murder Knows No Season. Ironically it’s due to be published before The Wrong Boy(how strange the world of publishing is!) and should hit the shelves in December 2018, ahead of the release of The Wrong Boyin January 2019. It follows on the heels of my collection of twelve long and short stories, Murder Keeps No Calendar, which was published in November 2017. That volume features the “genesis” stories for Cait Morgan (be there when she first meets Bud Anderson) and the WISE women (be a fly on the wall when they decide to set up their PI agency), as well as introducing the character of DI Evan Glover, the police officer who gets caught up in the tense case in The Wrong Boy,despite the fact he’s at the point of retiring from the police service when the book opens. In Murder Knows No Season, there are four novellas, one for each season of the year, and Cait Morgan, the WISE Women, and DI Evan Glover all get one each – there’s also a standalone, set in my new home of Canada. I first published these novellas back in 2008, but now I have a chance to completely rewrite them, and to work with an editor who’s been with me for six books already; I’m enjoying knocking them into shape, and allowing for the way the characters I invented back then have developed through their own series of novels. There aren’t many times in life that we get a second chance, so I am taking this one and running with it.
Which question didn’t I ask you that I should have?
This is a trick question, right?
Is Cathy Ace my real name? Yes, it’s my birth name…though I believe Mum wanted to name me “Fern” for the bracken which grows above Rhossili on Cefn Bryn on the Gower Peninsular (which I believe means something special to her, but I don’t like to think about that!) – until Dad pointed out I’d then be named “Fern Ace” which they agreed wasn’t a good choice! I’m happy they went with Catherine.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Cathy-Ace-Author-318388861616661/
Twitter: @AceCathy
December 15, 2018
Favorite books of 2018
Over at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore blog, librarian/book blogger Lesa Holstine is asking authors to name three of our favorite books for the year. Only three? That was hard, but I tried to make my list varied, with a philosophical mystery by a longtime fave, a thriller, and then something just plain fun.
Here’s the full post:
I recently asked authors to tell us their favorite holiday mystery, or write about their favorite books read during 2018. Clea Simon is the author of a number of mysteries, many of which feature cats. Her latest mystery is A Spell of Murder. You can find her books in the Web Store. http://bit.ly/2QsdtDX
Clea Simon’s website is www.CleaSimon.com. Today, she’s talking about her favorite readings of 2018. Check the Web Store for these titles. https://store.poisonedpen.com
*****
Earthly Remains, Donna Leon: Leon has always been more about her characters and their moral dilemmas than any straightforward crime, and this installment goes even further in that direction. Taken out of the city he loves for a brief respite, Brunetti learns once again how to row and also to face issues of mortality and grief in a book that encompasses pollution, climate change, and the unforgivable. Just a splendid book.
The Switch, Joseph Finder. Finder excels at everyman heroes – believable, relatable protagonists forced by unspeakable circumstances into doing the impossible. In“The Switch,” possibly his best book yet, seemingly identical laptops are switched at airport security. Who hasn’t thought about this? The rest, however, will defy whatever you’ve imagined. Just wonderful high-speed fun.
Hope Never Dies, Andrew Shaffer. The premise is ridiculous: Joe Biden discovers that a long-time Amtrak conductor has been found dead, an apparent suicide. A map, with Biden’s home address marked, is found on the body. I picked this up for a lark, a bit of nostalgia for a time when the administration was run by good guys, and I found a well-written, well-plotted whodunit. Think of Biden as a kind of everyman gumshoe, with Obama popping in and out as he is Holmesian Svengali. Yes, really!
Honorable mention: Sue Grafton’s “Y is for Yesterday” and Attica Locke’s “Bluebird Bluebird”
*****
Thank you, Clea!
You can read my list and others – new lists posted daily! – here.
