My Dream Research Trip

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One of my long-term dreams as an author is to be able to afford a research trip to Cornwall. There so many places in the UK that I’d love to revisit. But, I can’t really remember going to Cornwall as a kid during the time we lived in England though I’m fairly confident we went at least once.

And many of my books are based in Cornwall.

In my dream trip?

I’d visit Fowey, Polperro, Plymouth, Whitsand Bay. So many of the places featured in both the Sin Bin and my upcoming cosy mystery series.

What food would I want to try (whether for the first time or to experience again)?

Kern – Cheese. Because. Cheese. I mean, Freddie would want me to try Cornish cheese.
Saffron Cake
Cornish Pasties
Honeycomb

What would I like to visit?
The Coastal Path
Tintagel Castle
King Arthur’s Great Hall
The Lizard and Kynance Cove
Boscastle Harbour
Bodmin Moor

What’s your dream vacation spot?

((Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay))

10 Facts about Pravina

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An introduction to Pravina from my upcoming cosy mystery, Primrose Poison.

1. She’s Motts’s ex-girlfriend.

2. Nish is her twin brother.

3. Vina and Nish are Motts’s best friends.

4. Her mother is Indian and her father is Cornish.

5. They run a coffee shop/bakery.

6. She’s the most stylish out of their friend group.

7. She’s known Motts since they were young.

8. Definitely the extrovert in the group.

9. She can occasionally bit a little high-strung.

10. She identifies as a Ravenclaw–everyone else thinks she’s a Slytherin/Gryffindor.

I love my publisher.

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I do.

Genuinely.

I’ve worked with Hot Tree Publishing (and now Tangled Tree Publishing) for several years. I adore them. They’ve taken good care of me.

And then some days, I want to drop kick them across the ocean.

Kidding, mostly.

We announced my upcoming release a week or so ago. Primrose Poison. The first in a new cosy mystery series–The Motts Cold Case Mystery Series.

As we were discussing the ongoing series, we realized the first book stood out amongst the titles. While I haven’t written anything but the first, I know what the titles will be. And they were a bit jarring when you lined up the titles with cover ideas.

So we had two options, first, change all the other books. That would seem to be the better option. Except it wasn’t.

The other option was to change Primrose Poison to Poisoned Primrose.

Have you ever debated something so much you completely lose interest in the subject?

That was me.

The good news is…I still love my publisher. I love the cover (I can’t wait for everyone to see it.) And the titles are all aesthetically pleasing when side by side.

Crisis averted.

(Love you, Becky.)

NaNoWriMo 2019

Primrose Poison

Post National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), I’m often drained and exhausted. And while, I found myself tire and definitely in need of a break in December. It wasn’t the same.

I didn’t feel defeated or emotionally wrung out like I did in 2017 or 2018.

This NaNo, I reveled in writing for the first time in over twelve months.

Between November 2018 and November 2019, only two things changed. I wrote a story I’d wanted to write for over a year and a half. But more importantly, I had more of an outline than I’d ever used before.

I read (well, skimmed) Save the Cat! Writes a Novel. I used a bastardized version of the beat sheet to time my chapters out. And I found it helped a great deal with pacing and not writing too quickly (one of my greatest sins as an author.)

I also outlined the who, what, where, why and when. I didn’t actually have an outline so much as putting down the details for the victim, several suspects, and the killer. It helped keep track of them all, which is important in a cosy mystery.

What I also enjoyed was writing an autistic, asexual main character who happened to have an asexual love interest. I’m going to enjoy exploring their connection more as the series continues.

I had the most enjoyable experience with NaNo ever.

And I definitely believe it showed on the page.

Did you take part in NaNo?