Oct 27, 2025 | Interviews, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with Mary Flodin about her book, Incident at Cougar Creek
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I’m a potter & a poet
Why do you write?
I knew by the time I could write my name that I was born to be a writer. Writing is my imperative.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
During the Covid pandemic, I hiked nearly daily alone in the Santa Cruz mountains on the Central California coast, on land originally inhabited by the now-disappeared Cotoni Ohlone people. Walking on the land, I had visions and heard voices. A story grabbed me and demanded to be told. I wrote every morning and hiked in the afternoons. Each time I walked by a certain mysterious oak grove, characters appeared to me and told me things about themselves and their story. It became clear that the story had to do with mountain lions, a sensitive and threatened native animal only protected in two US states, California and Florida, and considered vermin everywhere else in the country. I was able to contact the head of the Santa Cruz Puma Project at the University of California Santa Cruz, and he gave me a two hour phone interview about mountain lion conservation issues he wished the public could be made aware of. I determined to include this information in my novel.
The first vision I had was of a murdered woman lying under the oaks. It was startling, needless to say. I “saw” her several times before finally stopping to speak to her. She “told” me she was a California Indigenous woman and that her people had lived in Southern California and Baja Mexico for millennia. She “said” that their elders, many of whom didn’t speak English, were barely aware of the border between the US and Mexico, and when they traveled on ancestral wilderness trails from San Diego to visit relatives in Mexico, and then tried to return, they were detained by ICE at the border, and were in need of medicines and desperate to be reunited with their families. Based on this information, I searched for the imaginary murdered woman’s people online and found a match—The Kumeyyaay Nation. Although I’m a native Californian (mostly Swedish, Welsh, Irish descent), I had never heard of the Kumeyaay. I tried to contact them through the Native Studies Department at UC San Diego but because of the Covid pandemic, everything was closed. After working on the first draft of the novel for about a year, I came to believe it would be inappropriate for me to write a story about the Kumeyaay without permission, so I decided to quit writing and shelve the project. The next time I hiked, an actual real flesh and blood mountain lion trotted across my path. I froze. The young male puma stopped, looked me in the eye, and “said,” “Well, we thought you were going to tell our story. It’s important that people know. You’re not giving up are you?” So I resumed writing. Eventually, the pandemic shut-down ended, and I was able to travel to Southern California to visit with the Kumeyaay. Here is a video documenting that visit: https://youtu.be/bcFtZJf3nvg?si=m9W0D0h6gdD4Wxru More about the Kumeyaay here: https://youtu.be/d_Z9wSMNkA0?si=mrrVvn2m5C39vfN7 I feel very honored, grateful, and humbled to have been given the opportunity to tell this story. I hope I got it right. Eyay e’Hunn — My heart is good.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I care deeply about social and environmental justice. Socially engaged fiction, cli-fi or climate fiction, environmental or ecological literature with social justice and environmental justice themes—this is where my heart and mind live. Writing within the commercial genres of mystery/thriller/suspense, romance, and speculative/paranormal/magical realism/fantasy allows me to reach wide swaths of readers who might not yet have encountered some of the issues and ideas that concern me. I hope to open hearts and minds, walking that razor’s edge of balancing heavy issues with a positive, hopeful, entertaining spin. Going off into the speculative realms, activating the imagination, opens up possibility so much more. More about why I write cli-fi eco-thrillers and romantasy here: https://maryflodin.com/
How would you describe your writing process?
Intuitive, hypnotic, visionary, disciplined, driven, compelled, emboldened, liberating. I usually “see” scenes unfold and “hear” dialogue as if I were watching a movie. I write in a small room in my home, seated at my computer under a skylight. I come to the writing at about 7:30 each morning, do a short gratitude meditation, check in on the totems, tchotchkes, and little writing Gods that sit on shelves near my computer, focus my gaze up to the sky, and the muses fly in and start downloading.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Writing is a solitary activity. We need community.
What advice would you have for other writers?
If you have a story to tell, do not put it off. Sweep away everything else you think you should do, and make time to write.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
In collaboration with friends, family, publisher, mentors
What’s your next step?
There will be launch parties, social media doings, etc. Then . . . Breathe deeply. Clean my house, tend my garden, exercise, swim, hike, take a break from the verbal modality and move into the visual/tactile: make pottery and plein air oil paintings. Spend time with friends and family. Read and watch movies. Laugh. Dance.
What book do you wish you had written?
Outlander
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
Amazed
FIND MARY’S BOOK ON AMAZON
Sep 5, 2025 | Interviews, Mystery, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with Clive Fleury about his book, All or None
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
When I was about ten, I spent a year trying to learn the violin. It was a disaster. I hated the instrument, and the instrument hated me.
Why do you write?
I have to write because if I didn’t, I could slide into a deep depression and drink myself silly.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
I stay for part of the year in Potts Point, Sydney, Australia, which is entirely coincidentally where Detective Ryan, the hero of my book, lives. I imagine the people he must see, think about their lives, and then draw inspiration from all of that.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
A cozy mystery thriller like my latest book, All or None, is precisely the sort of book I like to read. They usually have both good and complex characters, twists galore, and an ending which leaves me scratching my head and thinking: Why didn’t I see that coming?
How would you describe your writing process?
Hard and extremely time-consuming.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Social media allows you to quickly and easily connect with an audience of potential readers who may never have heard of you or your books.
What advice would you have for other writers?
If necessary, force yourself to write, as the rewards of seeing the book in print make it all worthwhile in the end.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
There’s something in each book that supplies a pithy phrase that goes to the heart of the story.
What’s your next step?
My next book in the Detective Ryan Mystery series – Never Enough. I’m writing it now and it will be out after All or None.
What book do you wish you had written?
There are far, far too many brilliant books in the world, so just choosing one is, for me, impossible.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
I cross my fingers before I read the review, and hope like hell that the reviewer hasn’t been too unkind.
FIND CLIVE’S BOOK ON AMAZON
May 15, 2025 | Mystery, Interviews, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with David Pearson about his book, The Farmyard Mystery
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I have written twenty-five crime fiction novels set in Ireland, published since 2018. Before writing crime fiction, my job entailed writing very long and detailed procedural manuals for the financial services industry for licensing purposes. I also wrote for an IT trade magazine in the 1980s. But neither of these led me into crime fiction novels. I’m a keen amateur photographer, and love shooting landscapes in the West of Ireland. It’s a very special place to me.
Why do you write?
The ideas keep flowing – I have a need to put them down on paper and share them with readers.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
From the beautiful scenery around Westport in Connemara. The locale is a character in all of my books, and adds to the story.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
There’s an endless font of ideas available, and sometimes, fiction is stranger than truth!
How would you describe your writing process?
I have no set timetable, but I try to get at least 1000 words a day written when I’m in the zone. I try to write three books a year, if possible.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
A wider spread in terms of publicity. Interaction with readers. Connection with other authors, and identification of trends in the market.
What advice would you have for other writers?
Just write – lots and lots. Don’t overthink it, and don’t bring in too many characters to your story. That can confuse readers very easily. Keep at it – don’t procrastinate – just write!
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
I get the covers professionally designed, and the titles tend to follow a theme, such as Murder on/in/at ….. or The XXX Mystery. Titles are very important. They impact sales a lot. I’m not delighted with all of the titles that have been used on my work, but those were decided by my publisher.
What’s your next step?
I want to write more of the current series, and maybe revisit some of the previous series that were very successful, such as The Galway Homicides, which has 15 books in all, or The Dublin Homicides, which has six books.
What book do you wish you’d written?
Books by Ian Rankin in the Rebus series or the IMP___ series by Ray Clarke. Wonderfully crafted and great stories too.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
I’m thankful to everyone who takes the time to review the books – even the negative reviews. I can learn from them, too, though, thankfully, they have been few and far between.
FIND DAVID’S BOOK ON AMAZON
Jul 10, 2024 | Editors' Blog, Crime, Interviews, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with Bob DeGeorge about his book,
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I’m a retired big city cop who now lives in a small town in Texas so I can play cowboy for the rest of my life.
Why do you write?
I always liked reading police drama. With the exception of a very few writers, these stories lacked the little details or, simply got those details wrong, that make a story real. Also, most big city cop stories take place in New York or Los Angeles. San Jose and Silicon Valley have a lot of interesting stories, I know, because I worked there for 27 years. After I retired, I decided to put those stories in a book series.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
My stories come from the real people and real crimes that I have investigated over the years. As I like to say, ‘that’s the way it really was, give or take a lie or two.’
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
Writing a police procedural is actually more challenging than living it. But that’s what I like about it. The challenge of not just getting the facts of the investigation right, but getting every detail of the story and the characters correct. And then making sure it is an interesting and exciting story.
How would you describe your writing process?
I am a linear writer. I decide on who and what is going to be investigated and then proceed to follow my characters through their investigation much like investigations unfold in real life, with all the twists and turns and false starts, until the main bad guy is caught.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Being able to connect with your readers all over the world is definitely a plus. My readers can contact me, and I can contact them, either in a large group or one-on-one.
What advice would you have for other writers?
I’m hardly one to give other writers advice since this is my first book, and I’m a newbie myself. In my case, I picked a topic I knew a lot about and worked hard to turn it into an interesting story.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
From the beginning, I knew this was going to be a series, so the titles had to connect. From my days investigating financial crimes, we always said, ‘follow the money.’ So, ‘Follow the Money’, ‘Other Peoples’ Money’, and ‘Where’s the Money’. As far as the book covers go, I hired a professional book cover designer, Tobi Afran, who worked very closely with me to bring the idea of each book to life.
What’s your next step?
Book two is in final editing and will be released in a couple of months. Book three is outlined in my mind, and as soon as I’m done editing book two, I’ll get busy writing it. I will promise three books in the series. If I find an audience that likes my work, there will be more.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
Now that’s a loaded question. If it’s a good review, of course, I feel great. If it’s not so good, I take a deep breath and then see what I can do to fix it. If I’m getting dinged for something technical, I’ll see if I can fix that in the next book. But if a reviewer just doesn’t like my story or my storytelling style, there is not much I can do about that. I guess my book just wasn’t for them.
FIND BOB’S BOOK ON AMAZON
Jul 10, 2024 | Editors' Blog, Crime, Interviews, Mystery, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with Sheila Lowe about her book,
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I am a forensic document examiner. One of my sons is a rock star, the other is a tattoo artist.
Why do you write?
I am compelled to.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
While attending my high school reunion, many classmates asked me to write about a murder at a reunion. So I did.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
Getting to understand what motivates the characters to behave the way they do.
How would you describe your writing process?
Haphazard until I finally settle down. Then I loosely outline, never look at the outline again, and work at writing 1000 new words a day. This consists of starting with what I wrote the day before and expanding on it.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Exposure. Apparently, readers like to feel they know the authors they enjoy reading. Wider distribution. It’s a great way to get free PR.
What advice would you have for other writers?
Learn the craft before you start publishing. Leave out most of the adverbs. Understand that even if you have a major publisher, you will be expected to do most of your own marketing. Writing a book is hard. Getting it published is harder. Selling it is the hardest of all.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
My titles are all puns on handwriting (my character is a forensic handwriting expert). The current covers are tied to the locations where the stories take place.
What’s your next step?
Starting to write the fourth book in my other series (Beyond the Veil). Continuing to market MAXIMUM PRESSURE.
What book do you wish you’d written?
Ashes to Ashes by Tami Hoag.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
If it’s a 5 star one, with great pleasure.
FIND SHEILA’S BOOK ON AMAZON
Jul 9, 2024 | Editors' Blog, Crime, Interviews, Thriller
Today, we’re talking with Chris Fortunato about his book, Deadly Guests
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
I coach high school junior varsity girls soccer.
Why do you write?
I don’t know why.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
It is a story collection, so there are many inspirations, all from conflicts in my life.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
With the best stories, you always care about what is going to happen to the protagonist.
How would you describe your writing process?
Slow and laborious.
What advice would you have for other writers?
Nobody cares. Only you. Throw the TV out the window.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
The title should have some relationship to what the story is about. At least for me.
What’s your next step?
Wake up at 3 a.m. and write.
What book do you wish you’d written?
The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearn, by Brian Moore.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
If it is a good review, pleased.
FIND CHRIS’ BOOK ON AMAZON
