Why I write mysteries

I have written, or started writing, many different pieces of work over the years - novels, screenplays, stage plays and short stories. More often than not, I abandoned the pieces and started working on something else. The few pieces I did manage to finish and even got to a polished state were always mystery stories.  The first story I finished, at around age 12, was called The Man with Two Faces. I do not actually remember much about the plot of this story, but remember quite vividly that I typed it on a massive electric typewriter that was a casualty of my Mother’s office PC conversion and that I scrambled to finish it while my sister was having a party in our basement. Her friends were four years older than I was and all seemed to take a keen interest in the kid in the basement typing a mystery story. They sat and waited for me to finish a page so I could pass it to them to continue the story until I finished it later that night. Perhaps because of the early validation in this genre, I have stuck with it and found I am most comfortable writing in this space. Not that I don’t intend to write other things for other audiences, but I naturally seem to gravitate to this category, and feel quite comfortable hanging out there. There is something about the mechanics of a mystery that interests me, the possibility of the reader figuring it out, even though you have withheld key information that only your protagonist knows.  In life, I am a creature of habit, and fairly well structured in my everyday life and I think this also explains why I like mysteries. Structure is a key component to a good mystery story and I find comfort in lining everything up “just-so”. As I continue writing my Cora series, I hope to find stories and plot elements that stump readers just enough without frustrating them, while at the same time satisfying my desire to tie things up with a nice big bow.

Cora Flash and the Mystery of the Haunted Hotel is now available!

I'm happy to announce that book 2 in the Cora Flash series, Cora Flash and the Mystery of the Haunted Hotel is now available for Kindle and Kobo!  Be sure to check it out and tell your friends and family about the mysterious adventures of Cora Flash!

Read the first chapter of 'Cora Flash and the Mystery of the Haunted Hotel' ?

As I get very close to finalizing the second book in my series, I would like to offer you a sneak preview.  Click here to read the first chapter from Cora Flash and the Mystery of the Haunted Hotel.

Don't forget to subscribe using the box to the right to make sure you get updates straight to your email box, and watch for the Haunted Hotel, it's coming to your ereader or bookshelf in just a few more days!

Stop the presses! Book 2 gets a new name!

I have decided to rename the second book to something that is more in line with the plot of the novel. The new title of the book is Cora Flash and the Mystery of the Haunted Hotel.

I hope you find it deliciously spooky!  Here is the new cover art:

Fundraising campaign on Indiegogo

I have recently launched a fundraising campaign on crowd-funding site Indiegogo in order to fund an advertising campaign for the first two Cora books. I am hoping to increase my reader base and I think a dynamic campaign will go far towards this goal. Please check out the site and be sure to tell everyone you know. Thank you for your support!

Click here to visit my Indiegogo page

P.S. There are lots of 'thank you' gifts (epubs, physical books etc.) available, so be sure to read through the 'Perks'!

Presenting the cover to 'Cora Flash and the Mystery at Topaz Mountain'!

I am VERY excited to share the cover of book two in the series, Cora Flash and the Mystery at Topaz Mountain!  The book is in the final stages of editing, and will be available to purchase very soon! Of course, I will post a message as soon as it is available, so be sure to sign up for my updates on the right side of the blog, and connect with me on Facebook and Twitter!

Download the first three chapters of Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar!

I'm happy to share the first three chapters of Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar! Get to know Cora by clicking the link below and I'm sure you'll love her. Then hop on over to my store to continue continue the adventure!

Click here to download the first three chapters!