Welcome to the Coffee Chat!
And welcome to this week’s guest author, Jackie Layton with her featured cozy mystery and new release, Dog-Gone Dead (A Low Country Dog Walker Mystery).
Good morning, Jackie! How do you take your coffee?
JL: I add flavored creamer to my coffee. My favorite is Snickers creamer and my next favorite is Natural Bliss Sweet Creamer.
Ally: We’re all for favorites here, so one coffee with Snickers creamer coming right up. While I pour, please introduce yourself to readers.
Bio:
I’m married and have two grown sons who both married wonderful women. I have three grandkids and one is on the way. Most of my life I’ve been a full-time pharmacist. When we moved to South Carolina for my husband’s job, I dropped down to part-time. I’ve loved the opportunity to spend more time writing.
Something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio: “As a child I read Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, Hardy Boys mysteries, and Scooby Doo comic books. Three of my best friends and I also read The Three Investigators, which followed three boys in California as they solved mysteries. We decided to form The Four Investigators and even created business cards to advertise our detective business. In case you’re wondering how old we were, the answer is fourth grade.”
Author Contacts:
https://jackielaytoncozyauthor.com/
http://jackiesbackporch.blogspot.com
Twitter: @Joyfuljel
https://www.facebook.com/JackieLaytonAuthor
https://www.facebook.com/Joyfuljel
https://www.pinterest.com/jackielaytonauthor
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=jackie+layton+author+page&ref=nb_sb_noss
https://www.pinterest.com/jackielaytonauthor/boards/
https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=jackie+layton+&search_type=books&search%5Bfield%5D=author
I’m married and have two grown sons who both married wonderful women. I have three grandkids and one is on the way. Most of my life I’ve been a full-time pharmacist. When we moved to South Carolina for my husband’s job, I dropped down to part-time. I’ve loved the opportunity to spend more time writing.
Something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio: “As a child I read Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, Hardy Boys mysteries, and Scooby Doo comic books. Three of my best friends and I also read The Three Investigators, which followed three boys in California as they solved mysteries. We decided to form The Four Investigators and even created business cards to advertise our detective business. In case you’re wondering how old we were, the answer is fourth grade.”
Author Contacts:
https://jackielaytoncozyauthor.com/
http://jackiesbackporch.blogspot.com
Twitter: @Joyfuljel
https://www.facebook.com/JackieLaytonAuthor
https://www.facebook.com/Joyfuljel
https://www.pinterest.com/jackielaytonauthor
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=jackie+layton+author+page&ref=nb_sb_noss
https://www.pinterest.com/jackielaytonauthor/boards/
https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=jackie+layton+&search_type=books&search%5Bfield%5D=author
INTERVIEW:
Ally: Do you know the book’s ending before you start writing? How specific is it? Does it ever change?
JL: This is a fun question. I usually think I know the ending when I start. As I write the story, my characters reveal themselves. More than once I discover it makes more sense for somebody else to have committed the murder.
Ally: What is your favorite social media? Why?
JL: I adore Pinterest. It’s so fun and inspires my creativity. I also have secret boards on Pinterest, and I use these boards to help me keep my facts straight. If I forget the color or make of a vehicle, I look it up on my secret board. It also helps me to remember longer after seeing it.
Ally: Do you prefer to read standalones or series books? Is it the same for writing?
JL: I prefer to read and write series. It’s fun to watch the main character grow and to get to know secondary characters better.
Ally: Do you write on a desktop, laptop or on paper? Why? Does it make a difference whether it’s a first or last draft?
JL: I always write on my laptop. I draw sketches of the town and the sleuth’s home, and I make a diagram of the victim and suspects. Otherwise, everything else is done on my laptop.
Ally: What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date?
JL: The third book in A Low Country Dog Walking mystery series is Bag of Bones and should come out this fall.
Ally: Which of the quick questions did you choose to answer?
JL:
Ally: Do you know the book’s ending before you start writing? How specific is it? Does it ever change?
JL: This is a fun question. I usually think I know the ending when I start. As I write the story, my characters reveal themselves. More than once I discover it makes more sense for somebody else to have committed the murder.
Ally: What is your favorite social media? Why?
JL: I adore Pinterest. It’s so fun and inspires my creativity. I also have secret boards on Pinterest, and I use these boards to help me keep my facts straight. If I forget the color or make of a vehicle, I look it up on my secret board. It also helps me to remember longer after seeing it.
Ally: Do you prefer to read standalones or series books? Is it the same for writing?
JL: I prefer to read and write series. It’s fun to watch the main character grow and to get to know secondary characters better.
Ally: Do you write on a desktop, laptop or on paper? Why? Does it make a difference whether it’s a first or last draft?
JL: I always write on my laptop. I draw sketches of the town and the sleuth’s home, and I make a diagram of the victim and suspects. Otherwise, everything else is done on my laptop.
Ally: What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date?
JL: The third book in A Low Country Dog Walking mystery series is Bag of Bones and should come out this fall.
Ally: Which of the quick questions did you choose to answer?
JL:
- an author (living or dead) you'd love to take to lunch—Hank Phillippi Ryan. She is so encouraging and writes great stories.
- a movie you’ll always remember—I can’t explain it, but While You Were Sleeping is one of my favorite movies.
- favorite accessory—Bracelets.
- pie or cake? What kind? Pie always and Derby Pie is my favorite. (I’m a Kentucky girl at heart.)
- best place you’ve ever visited—I dreamed of visiting France since fifth grade, and we went in 2019. It didn’t disappoint me one bit. Best trip ever.
Dog-Gone Dead (A Low Country Dog Walker Mystery #2)
Genre: cozy mystery
Rating: PG
Who’d have thought mulch could cause such a stink?
Low Country dog walker Andi Grace Scott is happy to score some free mulch from one of her brother’s landscaping jobs—until she discovers the dead body buried beneath the bark.
Worse, her brother’s landscaping tools were used to commit the murder. Once the police arrest her brother and seem happy to have “caught their man,” Andi Grace has no choice but to track down the real killer. She’ll risk everything to prove her brother’s innocence. Even if it means turning over every rock in town.
If you love small-town coastal life, dogs, and strong heroines, you’ll love Dog-Gone Dead.
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2AGWF4N
Kobo: https://tinyurl.com/ybo4pr8t
Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/ycf7765c
Google: https://tinyurl.com/y8u6sf45
Apple: https://tinyurl.com/ycyjno6b
Bite the Dust (Book #1 in the Low Country Dog Walker Mystery series)
Secrets can be deadly.
One steamy South Carolina morning, Low Country dog walker Andi Grace Scott discovers a client’s dead body. Police quickly decide she’s the prime suspect. Horrified, she knows she’ll have to turn detective if she’s going to convince them they’re barking up the wrong tree.
Proving her innocence could be a tall order. The local police never solved the hit-and-run that killed her parents; Andi Grace isn’t sure they’ll solve this crime either…not when they have a convenient suspect—one caught with the possible murder weapon in her hand. She’ll have to follow every clue and call in every favor, even if that puts her in danger.
Bite the Dust (Book #1 in the Low Country Dog Walker Mystery series)
Secrets can be deadly.
One steamy South Carolina morning, Low Country dog walker Andi Grace Scott discovers a client’s dead body. Police quickly decide she’s the prime suspect. Horrified, she knows she’ll have to turn detective if she’s going to convince them they’re barking up the wrong tree.
Proving her innocence could be a tall order. The local police never solved the hit-and-run that killed her parents; Andi Grace isn’t sure they’ll solve this crime either…not when they have a convenient suspect—one caught with the possible murder weapon in her hand. She’ll have to follow every clue and call in every favor, even if that puts her in danger.
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