My granddaughter likes to write stories. And she is good at it. Her “Horse Named Friday” that she wrote when she was in the first grade was well thought out with a surprise ending. She reads constantly and her room is stuffed with books. She once asked me why I write mysteries. I think I told her only that I like reading cozy mysteries, therefore, those are the kind I like to write. But this morning, I’m thinking the reason is a little deeper than that. No, I don’t like violence nor seeing people in trouble but I do like to see things work out well for the good guy. In a cozy mystery, that always happens. Cozies have satisfactory endings. Writing mysteries is fun.
A good mystery centers on a main problem with other, lesser problems swirling around the main one or a main plot with sub-plots. In the first Darcy and Flora book, The Cemetery Club, they are threatened by bad guys who want the hidden Cherokee gold. But Darcy also has to battle feelings of grief and deal with her relationship with an old flame, Grant Hendley. Flora is forced to remember a lost love and what that means to her in the present. In Grave Shift, the plot centers around finding a missing woman. There are people who knew the woman, some who loved her, some who hated her. And Darcy and Grant’s relationship grows stronger. Into the mix comes Flora’s friend Pat who tends to run to hysteria and Jasper who means well but only muddies up the waters.
The third book in the series, Best Left Buried, which hopefully sees the light of day this spring, concerns a mystery that is much more personal to Darcy and Flora. They discover secrets that have been buried since 1918. We see old characters that the reader has come to know in the past two books and a few new ones.
A warming blaze in the fireplace and a good cup of coffee are comforting contrasts to the very real dangers which threaten them. Never ones to look the other way, Darcy and Flora set about to dig up the past which her friends keep telling her is Best Left Buried.
Another bonus for the mystery writer, perhaps for any writer, is getting to know others who read, write, and enjoy mysteries. We share a kinship and an understanding although many times we’ve never met in person. Today I have the pleasure of being interviewed by fellow mystery writer, Amy Beth Arkawy, on her radio show, Deadly Fun, originating in New York. I’ve never been interviewed for a radio show before. Will I be nervous, calm, relaxed or ecstatic? Ah! Until a few hours from now, that remains a mystery!
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