D.B. McNicol, (Donna) joins us for this week’s The Cozy 52 interview. Donna has a new cozy mystery that just came out last week – Slay Ride, which is part of Holiday Corner Cozy Mysteries. Read on to learn more about all her books, why she never thought she’d be writing books, and who her favourite writers are.
Who or What is The Cozy 52? Each week I will be sharing an interview with someone involved with Cozy Mysteries – an author, blogger, Facebook Group host, podcaster, cover designer – so that we can showcase this amazing community! I hope you’ll discover some new authors, plus learn more about what goes on behind the scenes with the people who write, publish and promote cozy mysteries!
Introducing D.B. McNicol
NAME: Donna B. McNicol
LIST ALL YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES:
- Holiday Corner Cozy Mystery Series
- Snowflake Falls Cozy Mystery Series
- Red Line Coffee Mysteries
- C’Mon Inn Cozy Mysteries
- Open House Cozy Mystery Series
HOW ARE YOUR COZY MYSTERIES PUBLISHED? Self-published
The Q&A
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF
I’m a retired IT professional who never thought I had a creative bone in my body. Over a dozen books later, some say I’ve proven myself wrong. Not sure I agree. From police procedurals to traditional to cozy, I love a good whodunit with a wide cast of characters. I currently live in rural Tennessee with my husband and two silly black goldendoodles.
LIST THREE FUN FACTS ABOUT YOURSELF THAT WE WOULDN’T READ IN YOUR ‘OFFICIAL’ BIO.
- I once spent a winter packing grapefruit.
- I was a fiber optic construction inspector after my IT career.
- I didn’t start my career in IT until my 30s, when women were rare in the field.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START WRITING? WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE COZY MYSTERIES?
I started dabbling in fiction writing in 2001 after my quasi-retirement from IT. I had been doing non-fiction content writing for sites like BellaOnline, Suite101, and About.com as well as print for a magazine and local senior newspaper. I wasn’t sure I could write fiction, but played around with some children’s shorts and a romance short story that I intended to submit to a woman’s magazine. Then my husband was diagnosed with cancer and all that went on the back burner.
Fast forward to 2012, I was remarried and a very good friend had just self-published his first book on Amazon. He encouraged me to try so I updated my women’s short story and put it on Amazon. It was well received but many folks wanted to know more, what happened next.
Along came NaNoWriMo and Camp NaNoWriMo. My first romance book was written during that but also, my first police procedural mystery was as well. It started with a scene I had written down years earlier, that became the prologue for the book. That book was the start of my Klondike mystery series.
Another author invited me to write for her Kindle World (now discontinued) and after two asks, I did. That book was my first almost-cozy and is now my C’Mon Inn Mystery series set on the island of Kauai.
From there it was an easy leap into cozy mysteries and I have several I am currently working on. I differ slightly in that I tend to have a cast of characters that work with the police rather than one amateur sleuth.
WHAT SUBGENRE(S) OR THEMES OF COZY MYSTERIES DO YOU WRITE?
Again, I tend to be outside the box and don’t fit any of the subgenres or themes. My Red Line Coffee Mysteries involve three firefighter friends who run a coffee shop together. My C’Mon Inn series involves the elderly Thompson twin sisters (who people seem to love). My main characters, Candi and Mandi Winter, are the leads in my Holiday Corner mystery and will also be featured in the upcoming Snowflake Falls Cozy Mystery series where they meet their long lost cousin, Autumn Winter. The first book in that series is available now, AN ELF-ING MESS.
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES. WHAT INSPIRES YOUR SERIES?
I tend to be a pantser. I start with a few characters, a setting, and the victim. Most of the time I have no idea who the killer is until I get writing. My Klondike non-cozy series drew from the area where my late husband and I lived and incorporated several friends as characters. Since then, I search for photos I can use for inspiration. The visual cues help me keep them in character. I have featured all the main characters in my just released book in the Holiday Corner series, Slay Ride, in the Facebook Holiday Corner Group.
WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE LOVE TO READ COZY MYSTERIES?
People are looking for escape from their current hectic lifestyles, I think, as well as those ‘of a certain age’ (like me) who love the simplicity and fun in most of these books.
ASIDE FROM BEING AN AUTHOR, ARE YOU INVOLVED IN THE COZY COMMUNITY IN ANY OTHER WAY?
I have a Facebook group for my readers and participate in many others. I am also hosting a “Chat With the Author” event on an 18 day transatlantic cruise next year.
WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVOURITE WRITERS?
So many! JB Lynn, Amy VanSant, James Patterson, Meghan Doidge, Karen Maire Monig, Robert A. Heinlein, Robert Jordan, and many, many more. My reading is quite varied from thrillers to YA to Sci-Fi and fantasy as well as all mysteries.
IF YOU WERE MAROONED ON A DESERTED ISLAND, WHAT 3 BOOKS WOULD YOU WANT WITH YOU?
I’m not sure I could choose three. I think I’d like to read any of Ayn Rand’s books again as well as Robert Heinlein’s Time Enough for Love.
DO YOU HAVE ANY PROJECTS COMING UP THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE WITH US?
Too many! I tend to buy pre-made covers before I write the books. I am finishing up book one in the Red Line Coffee series, the prequel is available. I hope to write the next three books in the SnowFlake Falls series for next December. Since they are novellas, they write more quickly. Then it’s back to the final two books in the Red Line Coffee series. After that will be the three books in the Open House series, the prequel is available now.
The Quickie 5
- FAVOURITE FOOD: Lasagna & meatloaf
- BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Coffee & Diet Coke
- MOST PRIZED POSSESSION: A pendant fashioned into a gold nugget heart with diamond insets – made from my wedding set with my late husband and the first diamond earrings he gave me
- SUMMER OR WINTER? Neither, it’s fall all the way!
- FAVOURITE VACATION SPOT? At my age, it’s become a cruise ship going anywhere!
To keep up to date with D.B. McNicol online, you can connect with her on:
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | FACEBOOK GROUP | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | TIKTOK
Thank you so much for the chance to chat with you and your readers!