Who wanted Lissa Charney dead? The list was as long as your arm….but which one actually killed her?
The last thing
Mermaid Swimwear sales exec Holly Schlivnik expected to find when she opened
the closet door was nasty competitor Lissa Charney’s battered corpse nailed to
the wall. When Holly’s colleague is wrongly arrested for Lissa’s murder, the
wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth sticks her nose everywhere it doesn’t
belong to sniff out the real killer. Nothing turns out the way she thinks it
will as Holly matches wits with a heartless killer hellbent for revenge.
Wild
Women Authors features author Susie Black
and Death by Pins and Needles, Book 2 in the Holly Swimsuit Mystery
series. We recently asked Susie to talk about how her inspiration and what issues
she dealt with to create this mystery series.
Good morning, Susie.
Thanks for taking time out to speak with us, Let’s begin with which writer or
character[s], from either books or movies, [or both] have had a major impact on
your writing? There are a number of authors
who have had a major impact on my writing: Joan Hess, Anne George, Carolyn
Haines, Janet Evanovich, Tim Dorsey, and Donald E. Westlake are my tops.
I
credit the writing styles of these authors with how I developed my timing, my
voice, my comedic skills, and my use of snark. My books feature zany, irreverent
characters. I studied the characters of those authors to develop mine. Here are
the characters/ Authors who made the biggest impact on my character development
style. They also taught me not be afraid to create characters as outlandish as
I wanted them to be: Joan Hess’ Arly Hanks, Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum
and Lula, Carolyn Haines’ Sarah Booth Delaney, Donald E. Westlake’s John Dortmunder,
Tim Dorsey’s Serge, and Anne George’s Patricia Anne/”Mouse” and Mary Alice/”Sister”.
With regard to research,
where did you start for this novel? Like
the protagonist in my Holly Swimsuit Mystery series, I am a ladies’ swimwear
sales exec. From the beginning of my career, I have kept a daily journal that
chronicles the quirky, interesting, and often challenging people I’ve encountered
as well as the crazy situations I’ve gotten myself into and out of. The journal
entries are the foundation of all my writing.
All
of my characters are based on real people, and the central characters are all
strong, successful women who have beaten the odds. Holly Schlivnik, the main
character in the series, is based on me with some poetic license taken, of course.
The stories all take place in the fast-paced, at times cutthroat Los Angeles
ladies' swimwear industry where I spent the lion’s portion of my career. My
research was done at the California Apparel Mart in downtown L.A. where I
interviewed a number of sales reps and retail store buyers.
Did that lead you down
different paths, thereby changing the original concept? The research didn’t lead me down different paths, but
it did help solve some logistical details i.e. of how the murder victim was transported
from the scene of the crime to the victim’s office.
Tell us a bit about your
publisher. My publisher is The Wild
Rose Press. I heard about them from an author colleague. The Wild Rose Press is owned by two women who were
authors before going into publishing. Having a publisher that was female-led
and had been authors themselves was a major influence in my submitting to them. As
a female who has succeeded in a historically male-dominated industry, it was
important to me to write about the apparel business from a woman’s point of
view. I was confident this particular publisher would support me in that goal,
and they have.
For
my initial submission I sent a query letter via their website and was then asked to submit
a synopsis and the manuscript to the editor assigned to me for consideration. The
turn-around time from date of query to date of release was about ten months.
What are you reading right
now? I am reading Cause for
Elimination by Marla A. White
What's next for you? I have recently released Death by Surfboard,
and will be releasing Death by Cutting Table August 2nd and Rag
Lady November 15th. I am mid-way through the sixth book in the
series with the goal to submit the manuscript to my editor by the end of the
summer. I am also working on the first book in a prequel series to The Holly
Swimsuit Mystery Series. In this new series, the protagonist, Holly Schlivnik,
is a high school newspaper reporter who has an uncanny nose for murder.
To learn more about Susie
Black and the stories she creates go to:
www.authorsusieblack.com
Facebook:
https://facebook.com/TheHollySwimsuitMysterySeries
Goodreads:
goodreads.com/book/show/68040389-death-by-pins-and-needles?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=HjQPRm4FmD&rank=1
Instagram: Susie
Black (@hollyswimsuit) • Instagram photos and videos
Linkedin:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/authorsusieblack-61941011
Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/hollysusie1_saved/
Twitter:
http://twitter.com/@hollyswimsuit
To purchase Death by Pins
and Needles, go to: https://books2read.com/Death-by-Pins-and-Needles
Such an incredibly busy lady! I love your writing style and have my Kindle loaded up with your books! Best of luck!
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