As 2020 finally draws to an uncertain but hopeful close,
I'm wishing each of you a happier, healthier 2021.
May it be all that you dream it will be!
I'm wishing each of you a happier, healthier 2021.
May it be all that you dream it will be!
Although this may not be a "normal" Christmas for most of us, may it still be filled with peace and love. Happy Holidays! This Christmas song by the Pentatonix remains one of my very favorites!  Happy Holidays, Booklovers! While you’re waiting for Santa or for another holiday event, kick off your shoes and pull up a chair. It’s time for another Coffee Chat interview! This week’s guest is mystery author Matthew Cost with his featured novel, Mainely Power. Welcome, Matt! How do you take your coffee? MC: I drink it with gourmet creamer. First cup to wake up and second at my desk writing. Then, we go from there.  Bio: Over the years, Cost has owned a video store, a mystery bookstore, and a gym. He has also taught history and coached just about every sport imaginable. During those years, since age eight actually, the true passion has been writing. I Am Cuba: Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution (Encircle Publications, March 2020) was his first traditionally published novel. Mainely Power is the first of the Mainely Mystery trilogy featuring private detective Goff Langdon. This will be followed by Mainely Fear (just released December 2020), and Mainely Money (to be released in March, 2021). Cost now lives in Brunswick, Maine, with his wife, Harper. There are four grown children: Brittany, Pearson, Miranda, and Ryan. A chocolate Lab and a basset hound round out the mix. He now spends his days at the computer, writing. Ally: Tell me something that isn’t in your regular bio: “I mention it above, but I once owned a bookstore called the Coffee Dog Bookstore, named after my chocolate Lab, the Coffee Dog. This bookstore and dog were the inspiration for my Mainely Mystery series and are both present in the books. I fictionalize all the characters and places in my hometown of Brunswick other than that, except for a brief blurb in Matt & Dave’s Video Venture, which I also owned at the time. I figured I wouldn’t sue myself.” Matt Cost can be reached at: Email: matthew-cost@comcast.net Website: https://mattcost.net Twitter: @MattCost8 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matt.cost.3/ INTERVIEW: Ally: How did you get your first book or story published? MC: My first published book was I am Cuba; Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution, with Encircle Publications. Over the years I had tried to garner an agent and get to the big five of publishing giants. I had done that with various books, and ended up self-publishing one, Joshua Chamberlain and Civil War; At Every Hazard. Finally, I decided to back down and look at some of the smaller publishing houses. Cynthia Brackett-Vincent at Encircle Publications got back to me almost immediately, having loved the draft I sent to them. They are also publishing my Mainely Mystery series, which Mainely Power is the first. They are also publishing another historical next year and a new mystery series that I am two books deep into. I could not be happier. Ally: Do you write with a theme or message in mind? MC: I enjoy creating a story around fictional characters as well as sharing significant historical events and people from our past. In my historical work, there is most definitely a theme or message. For instance, my historical, Love in a Time of Hate; New Orleans During Reconstruction, coming out next September, depicts the struggle for social, economic, and political freedom that took place immediately after the Civil War. I also weave messages into my mystery novels though. I have three mystery novels coming out next year. The first has do with powerful lobbyists and the influence they have, the second has to do with heroin being smuggled through lobster traps in Maine, and the third deals with the resurgence of cult and cult behavior in the US. Ally: Do you know the book’s ending before you start writing? Does it ever change? MC: In writing historical fiction, I generally have a pretty good idea of the end of the book. When it ends might fluctuate somewhat, and in my most recent work, I have a fictional theme woven in that was not decided until the very end. My mysteries usually start with an idea and sometimes that idea visualizes the end, not that it always makes it to that particular end. The mystery I am currently working on that involves genetic engineering was a quarter of the way done when I realized what would happen in the end. Now, I just have to get from point A to point D. And yes, certainly, the end could change by then. Ally: What three books in your genre would you recommend to fans (after they’ve read your books, of course!). MC: 1) The Perfect Daughter by Joseph Souza 2) Within Plain Sight; a Detective Byron Mystery by Bruce Robert Coffin 3) In Solo Time by Richard Cass Ally: What is your writing project for 2021? Anticipated release date? MC: I have a full slate of works being published over the next year. The second Mainely Mystery book with Goff Langdon, Mainely Fear, was just released December 4, 2020. The third in the series, Mainely Money, comes out March 6, 2021. The first book in the new Clay Wolfe series, Wolfe Trap, comes out in June of 2021, and the second, The Reckoning, is slated for December of 2021. In between, I have a historical, Love in a Time of Hate; New Orleans During Reconstruction, coming out in September of 2021. I am currently working on the third in the Clay Wolfe Series. Ally: Which of the short trivia questions did you choose to answer? MC:
 Mainely Power (A Goff Langdon Mainely Mystery) Genre: Traditional mystery Rating: PG-13 Was Harold Dumphy killed to cover up something at the nuclear power plant he was the head of security at? This is what the widow asks Goff Langdon, private detective, to find out. Langdon is a laid back, slacker detective, happy with his work, friends, and way of life in the town of Brunswick, Maine. To compliment his income in small town Maine's scarce private detective market, Langdon also owns and operates a mystery bookstore named after his trusted companion, Coffee Dog. Does Langdon stand a chance against corrupt cops, crooked politicians, greedy millionaires, radical environmentalists, and a deadly assassin named Shakespeare? With the help of Bart, the bear of a cop, Jimmy 4 by Four the hippie lawyer, the immigrants Jewell and Richam, and his desire and employee, Chabal—he sets out to do just that. And then he is framed for not one, but two murders, and events become very complicated. Follow Langdon and his band of friends as they attempt to untangle the web of intrigue and return Brunswick to 'the way life should be'. Buy Links: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mainely-Power-Goff-Langdon-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08FMXQFNV/ Encircle Publications: http://encirclepub.com/product/mainely-power/  Mainely Fear, book #2 in the Goff Langdon trilogy is available now! https://www.amazon.com/Mainely-Fear-Goff-Langdon-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08KY6KJG2 Have a Wonderful Holiday! Good Morning, Booklovers! Are you ready for the holidays? Put your feet up and grab a cup of your favorite beverage while we chat with this week’s guest author, Judy Alter, who writes cozy mysteries. Welcome, Judy. What may I get you to drink? JA: I am not a coffee drinker. I start my day with a cup of hot tea, decaffeinated per doctor’s orders and flavored with a bit of honey. After that I switch to ice water, except on very cold days I may have an afternoon cuppa . Ally: While I prepare a nice, hot cuppa tea, please introduce yourself to readers.  Bio: After an established career writing historical fiction for adults and young adults, about women of the nineteenth-century American West, Judy Alter turned her attention to contemporary cozy mysteries. Most of her Kelly O’Connell Mysteries and Blue Plate Café Mysteries were published by Turquoise Morning Press and available from Amazon. When her publisher went out of business, she became an indie publisher and never looked back. Judy is an active member of Sisters in Crime, Guppies, Women Writing the West, and the Texas Institute of Letters. When she is not writing, Judy is busy with seven grandchildren. Born in Chicago, she has made her home in Fort Worth, Texas for over fifty years. Judy is also a proud Scot, a member of Clan MacBean. One trip to the Highlands convinced her that is where her heart is, and she longs to write a novel set in Scotland that would take a second trip for research. Her western fiction and nonfiction has been recognized with awards from the Western Writers of America, the Texas Institute of Letters, and the National Cowboy Museum and Hall of Fame. She has been honored with the Owen Wister Award for Lifetime Achievement by WWA and inducted into the WWA Hall of Fame and the Texas Literary Hall of Fame at the Fort Worth Public Library. Some of her western books are available Kindle and a variety of other ebook platforms. Something about yourself not included in your regular bio: “I am the proud parent of four and grandmother of seven. My four children are all adopted, and I raised them mostly as a single parent. We are a large, rowdy, noisy crew when we get together. Hate that quarantine and the pandemic has ruled out our get-togethers for the time being.” Contact links: Website: http://www.judyalter.com Blogs: http://www.judys-stew.blogspot.com; http://www.gourmetonahotplate.blogspot.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=judy%20alter&epa=SEARCH_BOX; https://www.facebook.com/Judy-Alter-Author-366948676705857/?ref=br_rs Twitter: @judyalter Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5446.Judy_Alter Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/judy-alter INTERVIEW: Ally: What inspired you to write your featured book? JA: Saving Irene grew out of my increasing interest in cooking and food writing. I have been known to say that in my next life I’ll be a chef so the book may reflect that, though Irene developed in ways I hadn’t expected and became a diva. I hope I’m not that. The other thread in the book is Chicago. As I grow older, I turn more to my childhood background. Saving Irene is set in Chicago’s historic Hyde Park neighborhood where I grew up. Ally: Do people you know ever show up in your novels? JA: People I knew in my teen years show up in Saving Irene. Friends from that period of my life have written me that they recognized this one or that. But the book is an exception. There are few people from my real life in most of my fiction. Ally: Which of your own books is your personal favorite? JA: The Gilded Cage, a fictional biography of Bertha Honoré (Cissy) Palmer, wife of hotelier Potter Palmer (The Palmer House) and one of the first women to combine great wealth with philanthropy. The novel is almost a history of Chicago from 1847 through the Great Fire, the Haymarket Riot, and the Columbian Exposition. I think writing that book is what renewed my interest in Chicago. Ally: What’s the very best compliment you’ve received from a book reader. JA: A fan once said to me, “I saw Kelly going into the Neighborhood Grill.” Kelly O’Connell, fictional heroine of my Kelly O’Connell mystery series, had become so real to her that she thought she saw her going into one of Kelly’s favorite neighborhood restaurants. Another fan said my characters are just like the people you meet in the grocery. I thought both were great compliments. Ally: What writing project is on your current To Do list? JA: Next on my desk is a sequel to Saving Irene. I have the title, Irene in Danger, and the first line “Irene Foxglove was flying across the ocean to ruin my wedding.” Plot ideas are bouncing around in my mind, and it time to get serious at the computer. Ally: Which of the trivia questions did you choose to answer? JA:
 Saving Irene (A Culinary Mystery) Genre: Cozy mystery Irene Foxglove wishes she were a French chef. Henrietta James, her assistant, know she is nothing more than a small-time TV chef on a local Chicago channel. And yet when Irene is threatened, Henny tries desperately to save her, wishing always that “Madame” would tell her the truth--about her marriage, her spoiled daughter, her days in France, the man who threatens her. Henny’s best friend, the gay guy who lives next door, teases her, encourages her—and maybe loves her from afar. Murder, kidnapping, and some French gossip complicate this mystery, set in Chicago and redolent with the aroma of fine food. Buy links: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08GXB8KP6 Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1531206726 Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/saving-irene-judy-alter/1137615165;jsessionid=25CDBD588337575DFC7FD06A31F73A63.prodny_store01-atgap04?ean=2940164502515 Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/saving-irene All books on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Alter/e/B001H6NMU6 Stay Safe, and Have a Happy Holiday Season! Good Morning, Booklovers! Join me for book talk with cozy mystery author Kate Fellowes on this week’s Coffee Chat! Welcome, Kate! How do you take your coffee? KF: With just a bit of soy creamer, preferably vanilla or hazelnut Ally: No problem. While I get our drinks ready, please tell readers a little about your background.  Bio: Kate Fellowes has published six mysteries, most recently A Menacing Brew. Her short stories have appeared in many publications, from Woman's World to Crimestalker Casebook. Working in a public library, every day is a busman's holiday for her. She blogs at https://katefellowes.wordpress.com/ Something unusual/unique that isn’t in your regular bio: “I love to roller skate, a skill I learned at the rink near my house when I was in college. (The rink has been closed now, due to the pandemic, and I really miss it!)” Other Author Contacts: Twitter: @katefellowes Facebook: Kate Fellowes, Author INTERVIEW: Ally: How did you get your first book or story published? KF: The first thing I ever published was a poem about Santa Claus that appeared in our local paper when I was junior high. When I decided to write a novel, I read—a lot—in the field, even making a template to follow: when do we meet our protagonist? How many sentences describe her? How long are the chapters? Etc., etc. Then, I came up with a story, wrote three chapters and submitted them. When the publisher requested the full manuscript, I learned the value of discipline and got busy writing the rest of the book that became Secrets of Echo Moon. It appeared under my real name, Jill Giencke. Ally: When did you first know you wanted to be a writer? What influenced that decision? KF: When I was in grade school, I knew I wanted to be a writer. Maybe because Mom made sure we had regular visits to the library and read to us every night. I wrote my first “book” on construction paper stapled together, with an inspired crayon drawing of the author on the back cover. Ally: Do the people in your real life show up in your writing? In what way? KF: You’ve heard the phrase: careful, or you’ll end up in my novel. It’s true. I have poached personality traits and physical ones, merging them into entirely new characters. I also combine places I’ve been and visited to create fictional settings. Ally: Do you know the book’s ending before you start writing? How specific is it? Does it ever change? KF: Before I begin, I know who committed the crime and why. I really should try to outline the whole story, like I did that first time, so I can move easily from one plot point to another, but I usually only manage to outline the first fifty pages before I get so excited about the idea, I jump in. By the time I’ve actually written those fifty pages, I can see the next fifty, and so on, all the way to the end. Ally: Do you write on a desktop, laptop or on paper? KF: I write every first draft in longhand. Then, when I type it, I make my first revisions. Ally: What is your next writing project? KF: I’m working on the second book in my Kirkwood Clues series, (working title: Deadly Harbor), planning a 2021 release. Ally: Which of the trivia questions did you pick to answer? KF:
 A Menacing Brew (A Kirkwood Clues Mystery) Genre: Cozy Mystery With the summer off, Amy is at loose ends. Since her husband is busy with work and her son is at college, she reluctantly agrees to accompany her mom, Barbara, on a trip to visit an old college chum, Carl, who became a journalist. Amy knows their long drive will be filled with too many of her mom’s stories about her personal Summer of Love, but she never expects they’ll find Carl dead in his basement practically the minute they arrive. Things go from bad to worse when Barbara becomes the prime suspect in the crime, since she’ll inherit the dead man’s estate. To clear Barbara’s name, she and Amy delve into Carl’s most recent assignment and discover a link to Kirkwood’s biggest employer, family-owned Stutger Brewery. More than one skeleton lurks in the Stutger closet. But are these old secrets still worth killing over? Or was Carl’s death motivated by an incident with more recent roots? One thing’s for sure—Barbara and Amy are making few friends among locals with all their questions. As the brewery’s centennial celebration fast approaches, it’s time for Barbara and Amy to bring things to a head and unmask killers, past and present. Buy Links: https://www.amazon.com/Menacing-Brew-Kate-Fellowes-ebook/dp/B0864THDXQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=menacing+brew&qid=1591125765&sr=8-1 http://prairierosepublications.com/books-view/a-menacing-brew/  Good Morning, Booklovers! ‘Tis the season to be jolly, and what better way to hit the right mood than welcoming another author to the Coffee Chat? Join me in saying hello to Robert McCaw, author of mystery/thriller, Death of a Messenger. So nice to meet you, Robert. How do you take your coffee? RMcC: Black, ground and brewed in a DeLonghi machine. I am fond of saying I like it black and bitter. I’ve always liked it black, and the Army taught me to take it bitter. Ally: I can’t say I prefer it bitter, but my magic pot can make it any way you like. While I pour, please tell readers something of your background.  Bio: Robert McCaw grew up in a military family, traveling the world. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, served as a US Army Lieutenant, and earned his law degree from the University of Virginia. He was a partner in a major international law firm in Washington, DC, and New York City, representing major Wall Street clients in complex civil and criminal cases. Having lived on the Big Island of Hawaii, McCaw imbues his writing of the Islands with his more than a 20-year love affair with this Pacific paradise. He now lives in New York City and La Jolla, California, with his wife, Calli. Something unusual about you that isn’t in your regular bio: “During my training at the US Army Airborne School, my main parachute failed to open on my third jump. I came down safely on my reserve parachute, but it was a memorable experience.” (Ally comment: Wow! I bet!) Website: www.robertbmccaw.com Social media: https://www.facebook.com/Robert-B-McCaw-923924024346405/timeline/ https://twitter.com/RobertBMcCaw INTERVIEW: Ally: Where do you do most of your writing - desktop, laptop or on paper? Does it make a difference whether it’s a first or last draft? RMcC: Over time, I’ve used paper, a desktop computer, and a laptop. Now I write exclusively on a laptop whether I’m planning a new novel or making the last pre-production edits to a manuscript. A laptop is both portable and convenient enabling me to work anywhere—home, library, airplane, or hotel room. As long as I have an Internet connection, I can also create instant backups on the Dropbox cloud, so even if my computer should die, I won’t lose work. A laptop with Internet access also facilitates research and fact-checking and makes it easy to preserve research, including cellphone pictures I take and email to myself to assist in describing some settings. I typically begin my novels on Scrivener software because it allows for easy reorganization, and then later transition to Word as the manuscript comes together. The search function, spelling, and grammar functions of Word, combined with Grammarly, provide powerful proofreading capabilities. Ally: Everyone seems to be on social media or talking about it. Do you have a favorite? RMcC: Besides providing me opportunities to advertise my work and connect with those who read my novels, I’m not a huge fan of social media. In many ways, the social media platforms seem to trivialize life and often serve as a conduit for spreading misinformation. People also think of social media as “free,” but nothing could be farther from the truth. These platforms are commercial enterprises whose users pay handsomely by relinquishing rights to their personal data, as well as subjecting themselves to targeted commercial and political messaging. While some platforms offer various opt-out provisions, many have not lived up to their advertised promises to protect the data they obtain from their users. Ally: What’s the best writing/marketing advice you can pass on to other writers? RMcC: I have three pieces of advice. My first advice to fiction writers is always to write what you know. Own your material. In the most general terms, that means choosing settings you’ve visited, picking characters shaped by experiences similar to yours, and dealing with plots and themes with which you have a personal connection. I am not suggesting that your writing be biographical, but unless you are writing fantasy or science fiction, your story will have greater appeal if it’s authentic and believable. I find that the further I venture from my own experiences, the harder it is to depict the details in the setting, dialog, action, and characters’ mindsets that make for a gripping story. Second, swallow your pride of authorship and find a good editor. Most writers I know (including me) get too close to their own words to see the gaps, inconsistencies, and other flaws in their work. A good editor sees these anomalies and does not tell you what to write but offers a new and different perspective on what you have written, hopefully enabling you to improve. My wife Calli reads all my books, typically more than once, and her input is invaluable. My characters are more compelling, my scenes more realistic, and leaps of logic closed because of her insights. And I also encourage and welcome suggestions from my agent and my publisher. Lastly, follow your instincts and don’t try to jump on the latest trend. It takes most authors well more than a year to go from a completed manuscript to a published book. What’s trendy today is unlikely to be au courant tomorrow. You have a greater chance of setting the trend than getting ahead by following what’s hot today. Ally: What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date? RMcC: There’s little good to say about the Coronavirus pandemic, but the isolation it’s imposed has created more time for writing. Thus, I have three projects in reasonably advanced stages. First, Oceanview Publishing has contracted to republish the third book in my Hawaiian Mystery series. That book, Death of a Messenger, with some updates and changes, will be published in January 2021. Its advanced readers’ copies will soon be available to reviewers. Second, Oceanview Publishing has also agreed to publish the fourth book in the series, Treachery Times Two, in January 2022. I’m now working on final changes to that manuscript. Lastly, I have another somewhat different novel in the works, but it’s too soon to say more about that. Ally: We’ll look forward to all of them. Now it’s time for trivia. Which of the questions did you choose? RMcC:
 Death of a Messenger (Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Book 3) Genre: Mystery Thriller Release date: January 5, 2021 Rating: G Journey deep into the exotic locales of Hawaii’s Big Island to discover its language, culture—and crime On Hawaii Island, an anonymous 911 caller reports a body at Pohakuloa, the Army’s live-fire training area. Hilo Chief Detective Koa Kane, a cop with his own secret criminal past, finds a mutilated corpse—bearing all the hallmarks of ancient ritual sacrifice. He encounters a host of obstacles as he pursues the murderer—an incompetent local medical examiner, hostility from both haoles (Westerners) and sovereignty advocates, and a myriad of lies. Koa races to discover whether the victim stumbled upon a gang of high-tech archaeological thieves, or learned a secret so shocking it cost him his life and put others in mortal danger. Will Hilo’s most respected detective stop this sadistic fiend—or will the Pohakuloa killer strike again, with even deadlier consequences? Perfect for fans of Michael Connelly and James Lee Burke While all of the novels in the Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Series stand on their own and can be read in any order, the publication sequence is: Off the Grid Fire and Vengeance Death of a Messenger Treachery Times Two (coming January 2022) Pre-order/purchase links: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1608094030/ BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/death-of-a-messenger-robert-mccaw/1136876259?ean=9781608094035 Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/books/death-of-a-messenger-volume-3/9781608094035 Have a Great and Safe Holiday Season! |
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