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Friday, October 11, 2019

Author Interview with Kirsten Weiss - Wits' End Cozy Mystery Series



Join me in welcoming one of my favorite cozy mystery authors… KIRSTEN WEISS!

I've read several books for Kirsten and more are still on my to-be-read list. Today, I'm featuring Kirsten in an exclusive interview about her cozy mystery series At Wits' End, plus we talk about more of Kirsten's writing, her books, her poetry, who does she picture playing her characters if the series where to be shown on TV, NaNoWriMo, and lots more.

First here's the blurb for Close Encounters of the Curd Kind, book 3 in the Wits' End Series. It's followed by the interview and a giveaway.



Close Encounters of the Curd Kind: A Doyle Cozy Mystery

(A Wits' End Cozy Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Publisher: Misterio Press 
Publication Date: 5 September 2019
Print Length: 250 Pages
Digital ASIN: B07VVF9VDW


Blurb/Synopsis:
The truth is out there…
Way out there.
Susan Witsend, owner of the best little UFO-themed B&B in the Sierras, is absolutely, positively, not going to get involved in another murder case. Not with her small-town sheriff threatening jail time if she interferes in one more investigation.
So when her neighbor is murdered, Susan exerts all her willpower to stay out of the sheriff’s business. But her neighbor’s daughter, Clare, needs Susan’s help. Clare’s been experiencing lost time, a sure sign of alien abduction. Helping Clare is only neighborly… and totally not interfering.
Right?
Worse, Clare’s not the only one with UFO issues. Weird lights in the sky, vanishing cows, and little green men are bringing the mountain town of Doyle to the edge of a panic. Can Susan unearth the truth before her town spirals into chaos?
If you like laugh-out-loud mysteries with complicated heroines (and breakfast recipes), you’ll love Close Encounters of the Curd Kind, book 3 in the Wits’ End series of cozy mystery novels. Read this twisty cozy caper today!

Exclusive Interview with Nadaness In Motion

Part 1: Wits' End Books
Q: Can you tell us a bit about the Wits' End Cozy Mystery Series?
Kirsten Weiss: Wits’ End is an imaginary UFO-themed B&B set in the Sierra foothills. It features B&B owner Susan Witsend, a heroine with a complicated past and some anxiety issues. She deals with the latter by being hyper-organized – she doesn’t try to control others, but she’s determined to control her own life as much as she can. But when it comes to dealing with authority figures like an irate sheriff, where she has no control, she falls into to a bit of self-delusion and decides she’s an integral part to solving local murders. The sheriff disagrees, but Susan just can’t see it. Fortunately for Susan, her organizational skills make her a fairly decent detective.

Q: What first inspired this series?
Kirsten Weiss: I wanted a “straight” cozy mystery series set in the same fictional California town as my witch cozy mystery series, The Witches of Doyle. In my witch series, there are a lot of unexplained disappearances – at least, unexplained to the townsfolk. So to cope, the townsfolk make up their own explanation: aliens.



Q: The blurb mentions the book being 'a laugh out loud' novel. How do you know if the funny scenes you've included are, well, funny? (OR Humor is relative, do you include situations that made you laugh in real life in the books. How do you include humor in?
Kirsten Weiss: That’s a really good question. I find myself laughing when I edit the book, and I have editors and beta readers who give me feedback on what’s funny and what’s not. So… I think it’s a funny product, but you’re right. Everything is relative!

Q: Writing help experts always say that the main character has to have a flaw, what is Susan's biggest flaw (if possible apart from trying to solve mysteries)?
Kirsten Weiss: Anxiety. What she calls “the shadow” is almost always there, waiting to dig in. She’s constantly battling to keep it at bay, and she usually succeeds with the above-mentioned coping mechanisms.



Q: If this book series were turned into a movie or TV series, who do you picture as playing the roles of Susan, her security consultant, and the Sheriff?
Kirsten Weiss: I could see Jennifer Anniston as Susan, Ryan McPartlin as Arsen, and Valerie Cruz as the sheriff (the latter isn’t blond with the sheriff’s Shirley Temple curls, but I still think she’d be great in the role).

Part 2: Other Books and Series

Q: Have you fully completed any book series? Or since they have standalones so all series can have new books?
Kirsten Weiss: I feel like my Riga Hayworth paranormal mystery series is complete, but I find myself still turning out short stories and the occasional novella. I guess I’ll never say never to adding another book to a series!

Q: What books are you currently working on?


Kirsten Weiss: I’m working on book 2 in my Tea and Tarot cozy mystery series right now. Though Tarot is a running theme, it’s more of a “straight” cozy mystery.

Q: You write cozy mysteries (including paranormal) and steampunk novels, which have been the most fun to write (or research and write?)
Kirsten Weiss:They’re all fun, but steampunk was the most challenging to research. In order to make my steampunk world as “real” as possible, I wanted to include as much correct historical detail as I could. That meant getting the language right, the clothing, the geography, politics… It’s a lot of research!

Reading and Writing
Q: What are you currently reading?
Kirsten Weiss: I just finished a book on Norse religions as prep work for writing another book. And because what we know about Norse religions is pretty interesting!

Q: NaNoWriMo is a month away, do you still take part in it to get your books ready? If yes, (or if you have been), what tips can you offer to newbies starting out with NaNo?
Kirsten Weiss: No. I’ve done NaNoWriMo, but right now I’m on a different schedule, which includes editing another book, so I can’t devote an entire month to just writing.

Q: I know you wrote a poetry collection or supplement book, Tales of the Rose Rabbit, do you still write poetry? Are you planning to publish another collection? Or was this an exception? (Coming from a fan of Tales of the Rose Rabbit)
Kirsten Weiss: Thank you! I do still write poetry, though I don’t have any plans right now to publish. Right now, it’s more of a spontaneous thing, and I feel like to publish I need a theme that would give some cohesion to the collection.

Q: If you could tell your readers one thing right now, what would it be? 
Kirsten Weiss: Please feel free to contact me and let me know what you’d like me to write more of! You can contact me via my website at kirstenweiss.com.

Read Nadaness In Motion's book reviews for The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum and Pressed to Death (Book 1 & 2 in The Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum cozy mystery books) as well as Tales of the Rose Rabbit (a poetry collection that's part of the Doyle Cozy Mystery series)


Also in 2016 – WOW how time flies! – Kirsten and I did a joint post on cozy mysteries and how they differ from traditional mysteries. Read 9 Ways Cozy Mysteries Differ from Traditional Mysteries

















About Kirsten Weiss

Kirsten Weiss has never met a dessert she didn’t like, and her guilty pleasures are watching Ghost Whisperer re-runs and drinking red wine. The latter gives her heartburn, but she drinks it anyway.

Now based in San Mateo, CA, she writes genre-blending cozy mystery, supernatural and steampunk suspense, mixing her experiences and imagination to create vivid worlds of fun and enchantment.

If you like funny cozy mysteries, check out her Pie Town, Paranormal Museum and Wits’ End books. If you’re looking for some magic with your mystery, give the Witches of Doyle, Riga Hayworth, and Rocky Bridges books a try. And if you like steampunk, the Sensibility Grey series might be for you.
Kirsten sends out original short stories of mystery and magic to her mailing list. If you’d like to get them delivered straight to your inbox, make sure to sign up for her newsletter at kirstenweiss.com


Connect with Kirsten Weiss via Twitter: @KirstenWeiss    Facebook   and her  Blog (Great one by the way!)

Purchase Links    Kindle      iBooks     B&N     Kobo    Google Play    Video
Keep up with the rest of the blog tour for Close Encounters of the Curd Kind by Kirsten Weiss including book reviews, spotlights, interviews, and guest posts. Or Check the links below on each date.

October 9 – I Read What You Write – Book Review
October 10 – FUONLYKNEW – Spotlight
October 11 – Reading Authors – Spotlight & Nadaness In Motion – Author Interview
October 12 – Literary Gold – Spotlight & MJB Reviewers – Author Interview
October 13 – The Book Decoder – Book Review
October 14 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – Book Review & Author Interview
October 15 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – Book Review
October 16 – Hearts & Scribbles – Spotlight & I Read What You Write – Guest Post
October 17 – Cozy Up With Kathy – Author Interview
October 18 – Baroness' Book Trove – Book Review
October 19 – Cassidy's Bookshelves – Spotlight
October 20 – Celticlady's Reviews – Recipe and Spotlight
October 21 - The Book's the Thing – Book Review and Guest Post
October 22 – Elizabeth McKenna - Author - Spotlight




2 comments:

  1. One of my favorite authors! Haven't read this series yet but it's on my list.

    ReplyDelete