Questions for an Interview

By Elaine L. Orr

I recently jotted some notes for an interview about my writing and writing practices, and they reminded me why I do what I do.

How long have you been writing?

For probably twenty-five years, I jotted notes and wrote short things and a few plays. Then I decided that writing books was more my style and started doing it seriously in about 2005. The first ones were published at the end of 2010 and beginning of 2011. I don't intend to stop.

Did you always want to be an author? What made you choose the cozy mystery genre?

I wouldn't say always, or I suppose I would have gone into academic writing programs instead of political science. I did take a journalism course right after college and wrote a lot of very boring reports. 

When it comes to fiction though, cozy mysteries were a natural for me. I had always enjoyed traditional mysteries like Agatha Christies or M.C. Beaton's work. I also decided that while some people might not read cozies, they could be read by everyone from high school up. If you write something that has a lot of violence or sex, there are distinct audiences for those, but not everyone wants to read them. Not that everyone wants to read cozies. I occasionally hear someone who has never read one refer to them as too simple. I dare them to write a good one.

Do you have a favorite place to write? 

I write in places with some activity, but not something I’m involved in. That way I feel like I'm with people but I don't have to talk much. Libraries are good and when I first moved to Illinois I spent a lot of time in Starbucks. I can also write at home. It may sound trite, but the hardest thing about that is keeping the cat away from me. I really like her, but she wants to sit on the keyboard or my lap.

Do you prefer to read cozy mystery books, or do you have another favorite genre? What are you reading now?

I read a little bit of everything. I like Anne Tyler, who writes literary fiction. There are still Agatha Christie books I haven't read. I do read some thrillers, from authors such as John Sandford’s Virgil Flowers series or almost anything by Daniel Silva. 

I like books where the characters are compelling. One of my favorite books is Pompeii by Robert Harris. Of course, you know how it's going to end, but the characters he created and the situations he describes are fascinating. 

I'm in a "women of mystery book club" (WOMB). We just finished Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Satanto. What's that saying? So many books, so little time.

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An Interview with Jazz -- Long Serving Cat

By Elaine L. Orr (with permission of Jazz)

There is one character in every Jolie Gentil mystery, sometimes with a bigger role than others. No, not Scoobie or Aunt Madge -- though they also appear. It's Jazz, Jolie's small black cat. She moved to Ocean Alley with Jolie, so she's been around longer than Scoobie. Jazz does not have a speaking role, but she can answer an interviewer's questions.

 1.    What is your name and your author's name?

My name is Jazz and I've been with my owner, Jolie, for 10 years. My author’s name is Elaine L Orr. She didn't used to include her middle initial, but the same year she started publishing in earnest, someone by the same name also did. What are the odds of that?

 2. What book(s) have you appeared in?  

I appear in the Gentil cozy mystery series, set at the Jersey Shore. There are 14 books in the series, and I also appear and a couple of other pieces. People just can't get enough of me. 

 3.  Please give information about the series.

 As a real estate appraiser in her Jersey Shore town, Jolie’s flexible schedule allows time for trouble. With a name that translates to “pretty nice,” she’s used to teasing, and her embezzler ex-husband taught her a lot about unscrupulous behavior. But stumbling across dead bodies in the middle of the work day? That was a new one. Fortunately, when she and I moved to her great aunt’s B&B at the Shore, she hooked up with old friends and made new ones. Some of them can be helpful in solving mysteries, some not so much. 

I, however, am in every book and I'm always helpful. That's why they put me on the cover.

The most recent book is Phoning in a Murder, which – in addition to a murder – touches on the issue of cell phones in schools.

4. Are you based on a real cat, such as your author's?

 I am a black cat, and proud of my somewhat haughty nature. My author has had two black cats, which were very independent and smart. While she has drawn some of my characteristics from them, I am my own Feline. Her cat, Stella, is shown in the photo. I can climb trees better.

 5. Can you share an excerpt from one of your books that features you in an important scene? If so, please include it.

 In Behind the Walls, I helped keep my owner from pushing up daises. Pebbles, a skunk without scent that had wandered into the house, was of some assistance. My author said to tell you she has put this scene in my point of view, so you get a better idea of my talents.

 Jolie crawled out of the closet and half-crouched. The intruder was still holding the gun. Plus, the intruder’s knee was a very hard place to head butt, and Jolie was dizzy.

“Bitch!” the intruder yelled, and rose awkwardly to her feet.

Apparently, Pebbles likes gunshots even less than strange people, and she darted out from under the bed almost at the intruder’s feet. The woman shrieked and raised a foot to kick her. Faster than Jolie could keep track of me, I launched myself at the robber’s ankle. Pebbles swung around and raised her tail at the woman.

“Get away! Get away!” she screamed.

She raised the gun, but she was really off balance, trying to shake me off her foot. I sank my claws into skin and began to climb.

 A short time later….

 George had hit the intruder and now had the gun. He held it at his side and said, “Stay down there, do not move!”

Jolie looked to her left and saw a white-faced Scoobie.

He then looked toward the floor. “Damn. That is one pissed off cat.”

Only then did I let go of my prey. I had made it up to the woman’s knee.

 6.  What do you like most about your role in your authors' books?

 First, my position is an important one, which is why I am on the cover of all of the books. Second, my owners are trainable. For example, they have finally learned that I am allowed to sit on the small table at the front window. Finally, while I have a role of sorts in every book, it is never an exhausting one. This gives me a time to nap and hide from the toddler twins who now live in my house.

7. Are you a talking cat in your books or a silent one who just meows occasionally?

 I don't speak in the books. My author has wanted to give me a speaking role, but I let her know that I had no intention of interacting with humans besides her any more than I had to.

 8. What advice would you give other cat characters?

 I think it is important to train your owners to provide what you need. I don't believe in this nonsense of being seen and not heard. Meow as much as you like.

9. Are you and/or your author on social media?

 My author is. I have no interest in pounding a keyboard.

https://www.elaineorr.com 

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/elaine.orr1/

TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@AuthorElaineOrr

Twitter https://x.com/ElaineOrr55

Irish Roots Author Blog https://elaineorr.blogspot.com/

Newest Jolie Gentil book is Phoning in a Murder

14^th in the Jolie Gentil Series, April 20, 2024

Setting:  the Jersey Shore

Lifelong Dreams Publishing

Paperback 178 pages

ISBN  978-1948-07099-7

Digital ASIN: B0D29VPJ9G