MLC: Do you remember the first mystery you ever read? If so, what was it, and what pulled you into it?
AUTHOR: Absolutely. I was in junior high and a recent transplant to the suburbs from the West Side of Chicago. I thought libraries were only in schools. My new friend brought me to the local library (in the basement of the village hall). She pulled a book from the shelf and said, “Start with the first one. You’re gonna’ love it.” It was Nancy Drew.
MLC: When did you first decide you wanted to write a mystery, and what led you to that decision?
AUTHOR: During high school from wanting to be a journalist to wanting to be a novelist. I had joined the school newspaper but never seemed to get my copy in on time. The student advisor suggested I pursue a slower paced, longer deadline writing career. He sent me to the yearbook staff.
MLC: Do you write in any other genres? If so, which ones?
AUTHOR: I have an unpublished children’s series called, Zoo-Dunnits! Peter Penguin, P.I. He solves mysteries at the zoo. I tried to write romance but an editor at a conference determined I had killed too many people for the manuscript to be a romance.
MLC: Which comes first for you, the plot or the characters?
AUTHOR: Usually the general idea surfaces first. I use the ‘what if’ test on the premise to see if I have enough for a book. That test includes determining if my characters could pull the idea through to the end. At that point I start to think in terms of big plot points. After that I pull up my laptop, sit down and write.
MLC: When you are all wrapped up in the story, do you feel like you could solve the crime, or maybe even solve all the world’s mysteries?
AUTHOR: I’m not smart enough to solve the world’s mysteries. I can’t solve where my husband’s socks disappear to after the spin cycle. I always know who did the deed. I don’t always know how everyone else is going to find out.
MLC: Do you write every day, or what kind of a schedule do you have? Do you write fulltime, or do you have a “day job”?
AUTHOR: I have a wonderful “day job” finding employment for people. I like to think that my books provide enjoyment for a few hours but my job changes people’s lives. That is a great feeling. I write most days, even weekends. I get up at 5 a.m. to write for two or three hours before I have to leave for work.
MLC: Other than your writing, what do you enjoy doing? What is the most important thing to you in your day-to-day life?
AUTHOR: I have a seventeen-year old son who is tops with me. I try to coerce any time with him. Before he had a driver’s license, I could lure him with the promise of a ride somewhere. It’s a little trickier when they’re mobile but money still works! I love to garden and have turned one entire side of the yard into a perennial garden with a pond and walking paths. I do a poison plant program—Plotting while Potting—and use some poison plants in my books.
MLC: Who are your favorite mystery authors? Do you try to emulate them in your own writing?
AUTHOR: I’m part of a Mystery Readers Group at my library and so I read two different authors each month. A few current favorites are Carolyn Hart, Barb D’Amato, and Margaret Maron. Although imitation is the sincerest form of flattery I think emulating anyone else’s style creates an empty shell rather than a work brimming with fresh context. I would like to think I emulate the wonderful traits that so many mystery authors display: Generosity of time to new writers, sincere answers to sincere questions, patience and willingness to share resources. This was my experience and I take great pleasure in passing it forward in any way I can.
MLC: In your present book, is this part of a series, or is it a standalone book?
AUTHOR: The Scout Master: A Prepared Death is the fourth in the Grace Marsden Mystery Series.
MLC: If you are doing a series, do you see an end to it sometime, or do you plan to go on for several years with it?
AUTHOR: At this point I have several more ‘what if’ ideas developing in my head. I’d like to think that if I write a story that doesn’t excite me or give me that ‘oh, yeah’ feeling, I would stop the series. Maybe start another that gave me that internal engagement with the story and the characters. I’d like to think that.
MLC: Do your characters ever drive you a bit crazy by going off in their own direction? If so, how do you rein them in, or do you just let them run off on their own?
AUTHOR: They don’t always listen but that’s listen when I don’t listen to who they are. I write up bios for each character (main and secondary) listing not only physical characteristics but also educational, family, and cultural background. I make up hobbies and quirks and phobias for them. When I’m writing if I don’t adhere to what they would do naturally or give them a good reason to change character, I usually have a fight on my hands. I’ve written pages and pages before I identified why I couldn’t get the pacing, the flow, and even the dialogue correct. I was out of step or sync with my characters. If I do my part they stay with me on our adventure in writing.
MLC: Do you pattern your sleuths after yourself or someone you know? If so, do you let that person know they were your “pattern”?
AUTHOR: Grace Marsden is a thirty-something-amateur sleuth who is Obsessive Compulsive—think, Monk in a skirt! Her physical attributes are made up. Her OCD is patterned on my own very mild childhood OCD. I counted and checked and had to eat food in a certain order. I also made ‘deals’ with the monsters in my parents’ basement. Who among us isn’t a little quirky?
MLC: How long did it take you to get published? How many rejections did you have to suffer through first? Were you ever tempted to give up? What do you think made the difference when it was accepted?
AUTHOR: I tried very
hard for 5 years to find an agent and then a
publisher. Most of my 106 rejection letters
came during that period. After 5 years I put
the manuscript away and began writing the
second book. In my spare time I agreed to
become a Webelos leader for my son’s Cub
Scout pack. They promised it was only 1 hour
a week!
I was never tempted to give up on my writing
because I viewed it as a process with
potential for learning and gathering info
along the way. I joined a writers’ group,
Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of
America and started attending meetings and
listening to the published authors talk.
What helped the manuscript was the advice I
received from an editor at Dark and Stormy
Nights. He told me to start the story at
chapter three and weave the first two
chapters throughout the book. I’d made the
error of a new writer—too much back-story.
The book was sold after only 7 rejections.
MLC: Do you ever attend any conferences? If so, which ones?
AUTHOR: I attend all that my family and funds will allow. Gas prices being what they are I try to travel with another author to share travel and lodging expenses. I try to get to Bouchercon when it’s in the Midwest, Love is Murder (Chicago), Mayhem in the Midlands (Omaha), Malice Domestic (Washington D.C.), Dark & Stormy Nights (Chicago area), Magna cum Murder (Muncie). I don’t do all of these each year—I’m trying to set up a schedule where I can attend most of them every other year except the ones in my immediate area.
MLC: Do you have to promote your own work, or does your publisher do that for you?
AUTHOR: I am responsible for doing the yeoman’s share of the promotion. My publisher does some advertising for me via postcard mailings and print ads. For this next book I have already arranged signings in bookstores for each day of each weekend starting in September through the end of November. I have some library appearances and a few club events sprinkled in during weeknights. It’s amazing how many phone calls you can make during lunch with brief stops for quick bites of a ham ‘sammich’.
MLC: If you have to do marketing, what methods have worked the best for you?
AUTHOR: I set up as
many events as I can. I bring a tabletop
display. In my case I have a small coffin
that holds The Rosary Bride (first book). She
is an 8-inch tall skeleton dressed in a
shredded Barbie wedding gown. My son
nicknamed her ‘Barbie
Gone Bad’. I also send out about 500
promotional postcards with each new book and
then target addresses around the events as
they come up. With this new book I am also
sending out sample chapters and ordering
information to 250 librarians and 40 advanced
reading copies to booksellers. I’m getting
better at contacting local papers for events
too.
MLC: Do you have any idea how your book is selling?
AUTHOR: They are selling well. The third, The Station Master: A Scheduled Death, pulled the first two into a second release.
MLC: What has been the best review you have gotten, and why?
AUTHOR: The review that pleased me the most compared my writing style to M.C. Beaton. I felt quite honored.
MLC: Have you won any awards, either as an author or for your books? Please tell us about them.
AUTHOR: I have not been blessed with any awards. My books have sold enough copies for me to be in the Diamond Club at Echelon Press.
MLC: Is there any one certain thing that a reader has written to you that made you just want to jump up and shout “Yes!!!!”?
AUTHOR: Any time a reader is kind enough to write and tell me they loved the stories I get a tingly, happy feeling. I don’t jump much though, more like the Snoopy Dance.
MLC: What is your next project, and when will it be out?
AUTHOR: My current project is a short story set in Italy. It is romantic suspense. The working title is, Tuscan Tall and Too Close for Comfort. It should be online by December. I begin the fifth Grace Marsden, The Lighthouse Keeper: A Beckoning Death in August with a tentative release date of September 2007.
MLC: If you could write anything at all, ignoring what editors and publishers say they want, what would it be?
AUTHOR: I’ve always loved romance, historical and ghost stories. Maybe historical , romantic ghost stories—nothing gory or scary. More the Ghost and Mrs. Muir type.
MLC: Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring mystery authors?
AUTHOR: I don’t know that they are words of wisdom. They seem simplistic. First, believe in yourself. Second, write the book. Third, don’t give up.
MLC: Do you have any teasers for your readers and fans about the next book?
AUTHOR: The fourth book involves boy scouts cleaning up the woods for a service project. They find old munitions crate filled with bones. The investigation centers on a satanic cult, a Wiccan coven, a murdered FBI agent and the spirit of an Indian chief buried in the woods. Think—Boy Scouts/Blair Witch Project!
MLC: If a genie suddenly appeared and said they would grant you just one wish for your books, what would you wish for?
AUTHOR: I’d wish for a ‘buzz’ or ground swell about the books from thousands of people. You have to watch those genies; they’re tricky group. I could end up with thousands of people with bad haircuts or an earthquake. Always best to be careful what you wish for.
MLC: Please give us your website url and your email address where people can contact you.
AUTHOR: My pleasure. www.luisabuehler.com thgrace1@sbcglobal.net
MLC: Thank you so much for giving us a little glimpse into your books and your life. We look forward to a lot more books from you.