D.S. Lang joins us for this week’s The Cozy 52 interview. Read on to find out more about her historical cozy mysteries, her favourite authors, and how she stays involved in the Cozy Community.
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.S. Lang
NAME: D.S. Lang
LIST ALL YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES:
- Doro Banyon Historical Mysteries
- My other series (Arabella Stewart Historical Mysteries) is on the cozy side, but not as cozy as Doro.
HOW ARE YOUR COZY MYSTERIES PUBLISHED? Self-published
The Q&A
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF
I taught junior high, high school and college (mostly English, but also government and history). I also managed a program for undecided college freshman, taught a freshman orientation course, and ran a living-learning community for undecided freshmen. I was also a golf shop manager, tutor, and mentor.
LIST THREE FUN FACTS ABOUT YOURSELF THAT WE WOULDN’T READ IN YOUR ‘OFFICIAL’ BIO.
- I started playing golf when I was four.
- I’ve volunteered with a variety of organizations, most recently with pet rescues.
- I’m a vegetarian. I tried the PBS 21-Day Vegan Challenge and lasted five days. Dairy products kept calling my name!
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO START WRITING? WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE COZY MYSTERIES?
I always liked to write. Putting ideas on paper usually clarified them. I love solving whodunits, but I don’t like explicit violence or gory descriptions, so cozy mysteries are perfect.
WHAT SUBGENRE(S) OR THEMES OF COZY MYSTERIES DO YOU WRITE?
Historical. A dog is in my current series, but she hasn’t helped with cases—yet.
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES. WHAT INSPIRES YOUR SERIES?
The Doro Banyon Historical Mystery series is set in small-town Ohio during the Roaring Twenties. Doro is a thoroughly modern young woman who is a college librarian and amateur sleuth. History and mystery mesh with a cup of coziness and dash of daring.
Both the town and college in the book are products of my imagination. However, at one time, there actually was a Mitchaw, Ohio (sometimes called Mitchaw Corners). It was the birthplace some relatives, including my dad. At its height, Mitchaw was an unincorporated village surrounded by farms. Like many other small, rural communities, it has disappeared as a separate entity. Now, it is part of Sylvania Township, and subdivisions have replaced most farms.
The inspiration was my relatives once living on a farm near the town that disappeared. It’s fun to think how things might have been years ago, and even more fun to create a unique setting in time and place. The 1920s were a time of great change in America, but women still had few opportunities, so I explore some of that through Doro.
WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE LOVE TO READ COZY MYSTERIES?
Cozies have a good puzzle to piece together at their heart, which many readers enjoy. Also, the small world created, and the colorful characters in it, add to the charm. The lack of graphic violence, explicit sex, profanity, and obscenity all make cozies warm and comfortable reads.
ASIDE FROM BEING AN AUTHOR, ARE YOU INVOLVED IN THE COZY COMMUNITY IN ANY OTHER WAY?
Jolie Tunnell and I manage a Facebook group for author and readers of cozy-style historical mysteries. We have fun posts six days/week.
WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVOURITE WRITERS?
Deanna Raybourn, Leighann Dobbs, Verity Bright, Wayne Dyer, Louise Hay.
IF YOU WERE MAROONED ON A DESERTED ISLAND, WHAT 3 BOOKS WOULD YOU WANT WITH YOU?
- The Distant Summer (Sarah Patterson)-It has been out of print for years, but I love it and reread it every couple of years.
- Wisdom of the Ages (Wayne Dyer)
- Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
DO YOU HAVE ANY PROJECTS COMING UP THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE WITH US?
The second book in my Doro Banyon series came out December 2.
Travel back to small-town America during the Roaring Twenties and join Doro Banyon, college librarian and amateur sleuth, as she sets her sights on solving another murder and saving her hometown’s Christmas celebration.
As the fall semester ends, Doro’s hands are full as a professor, librarian, and volunteer. She looks forward to planning and celebrating her hometown’s annual Christmas festivities, but her enthusiasm is tested when the chairwoman’s dictatorial ways create dissension among the committee members. Dissension soon turns to malice, and threats fly among the matron and several others. When she is found dead, unsettling questions arise—and so do longstanding grudges. Who caused the woman’s fatal fall from a ladder? After the chairwoman’s handyman disappears, anxiety escalates among townsfolk. Doro and her best friend, Aggie, along with two local lawmen, investigate. Can they catch the killer in time to save the holiday celebration? Or will others fall victim to the perpetrator?
The Quickies
- FAVOURITE FOOD: Middle Eastern-spinach pie, grape leaves, hummus, feta, pita.
- BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: coffee in the morning!
- FAVOURITE SEASON? Spring
- FAVOURITE VACATION SPOT? Kiawah Island, South Carolina
To keep up to date with D.S. Lang online, you can connect with her on:
