Good Morning, Booklovers!
Now that Halloween is over, the blog returns to author interviews with a super guest. Charlotte Stuart joins us with her mystery/PI novel, Survival Can Be Deadly.
Welcome, Charlotte! How do you take your coffee?
CS: Although I always hate ordering a “tall drip,” that’s what I drink – black, brewed coffee.
Ally: My preference too. While I pour, please introduce yourself to readers.
Now that Halloween is over, the blog returns to author interviews with a super guest. Charlotte Stuart joins us with her mystery/PI novel, Survival Can Be Deadly.
Welcome, Charlotte! How do you take your coffee?
CS: Although I always hate ordering a “tall drip,” that’s what I drink – black, brewed coffee.
Ally: My preference too. While I pour, please introduce yourself to readers.
Bio:
In a world filled with uncertainty and too little chocolate, Charlotte Stuart, PhD, has taught college courses in communication, gone commercial fishing in Alaska, and survived being the VP of HR and Training for a large credit union. Her current passion is for writing lighthearted mysteries with a pinch of adventure and a dollop of humor. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys watching herons, eagles, seals and other sea life from her Vashon Island home office.
Ally: Tell me something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio: “My husband and I spent a year going “around the world in the San Juans” on a 39 foot sailboat. We anchored in small harbors and tied to docks when the weather got bad. We spent our days exploring and writing. It was an idyllic year.”
Contact links:
Email: cs.charlottestuart@gmail.com
Website: www.charlottestuart.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/quirkymysteries
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlotte.stuart.mysterywriter
In a world filled with uncertainty and too little chocolate, Charlotte Stuart, PhD, has taught college courses in communication, gone commercial fishing in Alaska, and survived being the VP of HR and Training for a large credit union. Her current passion is for writing lighthearted mysteries with a pinch of adventure and a dollop of humor. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys watching herons, eagles, seals and other sea life from her Vashon Island home office.
Ally: Tell me something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio: “My husband and I spent a year going “around the world in the San Juans” on a 39 foot sailboat. We anchored in small harbors and tied to docks when the weather got bad. We spent our days exploring and writing. It was an idyllic year.”
Contact links:
Email: cs.charlottestuart@gmail.com
Website: www.charlottestuart.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/quirkymysteries
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charlotte.stuart.mysterywriter
INTERVIEW:
Ally: What do you find most rewarding about a writing career? Most negative or frustrating?
CS: I really enjoy the writing process. My husband also writes, so we talk plots and characters on our daily walks. Also, I have a fun presentation titled “Getting Serious About Humor: Murder Mysteries that Bump Your Funny Bone” that I’ve only done once, but I have four more scheduled and am looking for other opportunities.
What I find frustrating is most of what you have to do to market your book these days. Asking people for blurbs has been particularly painful for me, but it’s also expanded my network of local authors. I’m thankful for that.
Ally: If you met Lawrence Block, what would you talk about?
CS: Once I got over babbling about how much I’ve enjoyed his books, including Writing the Novel from Plot to Print to Pixel, I would like ask him about how he sees the future of mystery writing given all of the changes he has seen over his writing career.
Ally: Which of your books is your personal favorite? Why?
CS: I have a favorite unpublished book. The main character is an edgy, athletic, single woman who does woods parkour. Kinda my alter ego. And, she’s of course tall. I’ve always wanted to be tall, so my female characters are never shorter than 5’10”. Another reason I like this book is that the setting is Vashon Island. I love the island and enjoyed describing landmarks and sharing stories. Now if I can just get a publisher interested….
Ally: Other than your own, what three books in your genre would you recommend to fans?
CS: If they like zany, I recommend Lisa Lutz’s Spellman Files. If they like well researched mysteries in interesting settings, they might want to read Jeanne Matthew’s Bonereapers. I’ve also read all of the Elly Griffiths’ books. They are consistently entertaining.
Ally: What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date?
CS: I just sold a book titled “Why Me? Chimeras, Conundrums and Dead Gold Fish.” It features an amateur sleuth who lives on a boat with her cat, Macavity. She discovers a body when hiking alone in Scotland. He turns out to be a research scientist from her hometown. The plot starts spiraling out from there. No release date yet.
Ally: Which of the quick answer questions did you choose?
Ally: What do you find most rewarding about a writing career? Most negative or frustrating?
CS: I really enjoy the writing process. My husband also writes, so we talk plots and characters on our daily walks. Also, I have a fun presentation titled “Getting Serious About Humor: Murder Mysteries that Bump Your Funny Bone” that I’ve only done once, but I have four more scheduled and am looking for other opportunities.
What I find frustrating is most of what you have to do to market your book these days. Asking people for blurbs has been particularly painful for me, but it’s also expanded my network of local authors. I’m thankful for that.
Ally: If you met Lawrence Block, what would you talk about?
CS: Once I got over babbling about how much I’ve enjoyed his books, including Writing the Novel from Plot to Print to Pixel, I would like ask him about how he sees the future of mystery writing given all of the changes he has seen over his writing career.
Ally: Which of your books is your personal favorite? Why?
CS: I have a favorite unpublished book. The main character is an edgy, athletic, single woman who does woods parkour. Kinda my alter ego. And, she’s of course tall. I’ve always wanted to be tall, so my female characters are never shorter than 5’10”. Another reason I like this book is that the setting is Vashon Island. I love the island and enjoyed describing landmarks and sharing stories. Now if I can just get a publisher interested….
Ally: Other than your own, what three books in your genre would you recommend to fans?
CS: If they like zany, I recommend Lisa Lutz’s Spellman Files. If they like well researched mysteries in interesting settings, they might want to read Jeanne Matthew’s Bonereapers. I’ve also read all of the Elly Griffiths’ books. They are consistently entertaining.
Ally: What is your next writing project? Anticipated release date?
CS: I just sold a book titled “Why Me? Chimeras, Conundrums and Dead Gold Fish.” It features an amateur sleuth who lives on a boat with her cat, Macavity. She discovers a body when hiking alone in Scotland. He turns out to be a research scientist from her hometown. The plot starts spiraling out from there. No release date yet.
Ally: Which of the quick answer questions did you choose?
- a. favorite book: The Man from Moscow by Amor Towles. Great storyteller.
- b. book you're currently reading: The Women of the Sea by Lisa See. It’s a setting and time period I haven’t thought about much before.
- c. an author (living or dead) you'd love to take to lunch: Donald Barthelme. I heard him speak shortly before his death and thoroughly enjoyed his thought processes and use of language. At lunch with him I would eat and let him do the talking.
- d. favorite accessory (jewelry, scarves, shoes, etc.) I love jewelry – necklaces, rings, pins. I particularly like craft jewelry as opposed to traditional. The more asymmetrical and creative the better.
- e. a supernatural ability you’d like to have: I’d like able to become invisible on command. Not just on bad hair days. But to be able to go places and observe what’s happening without being seen. It’s the “fly on the wall” urge.
Survival Can Be Deadly
Genre: Mystery/PI
Genre: Mystery/PI
In this lighthearted mystery set in Seattle, single mom and recent widow Cameron Chandler grabs a chance to reinvent herself by taking a much-needed job at Penny-wise Investigations. Penny-wise is a discount detective agency conveniently located in a suburban shopping mall – “Vigilance You Can Afford.” Her first case is to locate a runaway girl, something her predecessor had been pursuing before he disappeared. Following in his footsteps, the trail leads to a survivalist camp on a remote island in northern Puget Sound. Armed with only a Swiss Army Knife and her quirky on-the-job training as a suburban sleuth, Cameron uncovers more than she bargained for. She soon finds herself in a fight for her own survival.
Buy Links:
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Survival-Can-Deadly-Charlotte-Stuart/dp/1940442265/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=survival+can+be+deadly&qid=1568653160&s=books&sr=1-1
Barnes and Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/survival-can-be-deadly-charlotte-stuart/1133060099?ean=9781940442266
IndieBound
https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781940442266?aff=amphoraepubgroup
Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=Survival+can+be+deadly
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Survival-Can-Deadly-Charlotte-Stuart/dp/1940442265/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=survival+can+be+deadly&qid=1568653160&s=books&sr=1-1
Barnes and Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/survival-can-be-deadly-charlotte-stuart/1133060099?ean=9781940442266
IndieBound
https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781940442266?aff=amphoraepubgroup
Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/search?query=Survival+can+be+deadly
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