One of my favorite things to read and write about in a historical romance is the ubiquitous house party. Back in the Regency, when it took a while to travel, guests might stay with a host for several weeks. I think my introverted self has a horrified sort of fascination with the idea of this (I’m pretty much ready to go after I’ve visited someone for a couple of days.) In my novel, THE IMPROPER BRIDE, our hero finds himself in want of a wife and decides to host a house party at his grand country estate. As you can imagine, the guests during these extended parties needed to be occupied (possibly so they wouldn’t drive each other mad, but maybe that’s just my point of view). This became a little harder to do if, like in THE IMPROPER BRIDE, the guests are snowed in. Being limited to the indoors automatically rules out hunting or shooting for the men, or riding, walking, carriage rides, and lawn games for both genders. But still, there were plenty of options for indoor entertainment, from a variety of word games to amateur theatricals. While my hero, Henry, is quite content with a sedate game…

I write what are called ‘cozy’ mysteries, and this time of year do I ever want to feel cozy! As I look out my office window, the snow is gently falling and gathering in my neighbor’s pine trees. Sometimes a gust of wind comes up and tosses the tops of those pines, sending a flurry of snow sideways. I have a steaming mug of tea on my desk, and a plate of Walkers’ shortbread cookies. My cats are bugging me, bored out of their tiny minds because of the weather. Feline Cabin Fever, I suppose. I’ll probably wander onto Pinterest later to ‘research’ teapots and recipes. And there you have several ‘cozy’ elements right there: tea, cats, and recipes! I love the ‘cozy’ lifestyle! And I feel so very fortunate to write cozy mysteries for cozy readers. But… what is a cozy mystery? In truth the inclusion of those things – tea, cats, recipes – are not to me the defining elements of a cozy mystery. Here are my top three characteristics of a cozy mystery: Small town setting OR (as in Cleo Coyle’s brilliant Coffeehouse mysteries) the ability to take a portion of a big city and make it…

In the Second Chance Cat mysteries Sarah Grayson owns a re-purpose shop, Second Chance. Sarah likes finding treasures for her store, sometimes giving things a whole new life. That’s something we have in common. I like thrift stores, flea markets, second hand shops and consignment stores. And it’s not just about saving money, although I am known for being well…frugal. For me, it really is like going on a treasure hunt. I never know what I’m going to find. And to make it more likely I’ll end up with a treasure and not a lump of coal I have some rules I try to follow. If it can’t be washed, don’t buy it. Anything that can’t go in my washing machine or my basement sink with lots of hot water and soap stays at the store. My art table (solid top, solid legs) was wiped off before it went in the trunk of my car and stayed in the back yard until it could be scrubbed top to bottom. (Did I mention I’m a little germaphobic?) Check everything. Look over every seam for tears, every hem, cuff and collar for wear. Make sure the zipper works. Check for pills and…

Hello. My name is Delia James, and I write mysteries. Specifically, I write mysteries with magic and cats with plenty of attitude. This is no surprise to anybody who knows me. I grew up on mysteries. Summers at my grandmother’s in the country, I discovered her Agatha Christie books and was immediately fascinated by Hercule Poirot. TV was filled with mysteries and we never missed them, Colombo, MacMillan & Wife, McCloud, The Rockford Files, Quincy…and of course I was in love with the Hardy Boys as played by Shaun Cassidy and Parker Stevenson (for the record, I was a Parker Girl, all the way). Of course I could quote Sherlock Holmes, chapter and verse. In college, I got introduced to, and fell in love all over again with, Lord Peter Whimsey. Despite this, when I started writing, mysteries were not my first choice. I was (confession time) also a major science fiction nerd and it was science fiction I gravitated to first. I don’t regret it at all. Science fiction is fun, and it teaches you a lot about how to build a fictional world along with the characters that fit into it, or don’t. This can be valuable training…

Researching my Fairy Tale Fatal mystery series means reading old travelogues and novels, studying antique fashion plates, poring over period railroad timetables and restaurant menus, and—oh, yeah!—traveling in Europe. My job is SO HARD. (Kidding.) BEAUTY, BEAST, AND BELLADONNA is set in 1867 in the Périgord region of France. I always knew the story would concern the “true history” of my all-time favorite fairy tale, “Beauty and the Beast,” but beyond that, I wasn’t sure . . . until, that is, I read about the prehistoric cave art in the Vézère Valley. These caves—the most famous one is Lascaux—are decorated with Paleolithic pictures of animals. Animals, you know . . . as in beasts? Bingo. There was my angle, because the idea of pairing “Beauty and the Beast” with the painted caves seemed so juicy. Only catch was, I had, um, never been to the Périgord. So I packed up the Fam—my husband, my mom, and my two little kids—and off we went! Getting There. Okay. Maybe it wasn’t quite simple as “and of we went!” Those of you who have traveled with little kids know what a gigantic production it is. For example: Bring your own car seats OR…