There’s Always Research

Penny Frost McGinnis

I’ve finished writing my Abbott Island series and my next children’s book. Now what?

Research. 

Diving into my next series and discovering my characters, plus the setting, requires time in nonfiction books along with fiction stories in the genre of cozy mystery, my latest endeavor. 

Cozies take me away from the every day and into the interesting world of amateur sleuths. I love to follow a series as the sleuth grows in her skills and discovers the who behind who-dun-it. Puzzling over clues offers a bit of armchair sleuthing while I spend time in the small towns with their quirky characters. So why not try my hand at writing one? 

I’m currently reading Writing the Cozy Mystery, so I’m refreshed in the basics. It’s What I Do: A Photographer’s Life of Love and War, which is fascinating, and sometimes sad, and will shape my sleuth’s personality and background. Plus, Baa-Baa Blacknose Sheep: The Blacknose Sheep from Valais, because every amateur sleuth needs a pet. Plus, I like sheep.

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My TBR pile is toppling over with You Can Write a Mystery, 400 Things Cops Know, Ranger Confidential, and Travelers Rest. Plus a few more I haven’t gotten my hands on yet. 

I’ve sandwiched favorite authors in between all the “work” reads. I just finished Heidi Chiavaroli’s The Way Back, and it was excellent. I love books set on the shore with a lighthouse, like Amanda Cox’s new book Between the Sound and Sea. If you like cozies, like me, read Jackie Layton’s series. I love to recommend books. Jennifer Deible is another favorite.

On my recent birthday, my family provided me with the means to buy more books. What were they thinking? They know I can’t go a day without reading. And I love them for that.

Do you enjoy reading nonfiction as well as fiction? I’d love to know your favorite reads.

Penny Frost McGinnis, author of picture book, Betsy and/y Bailey: No One Will be Just Like You, and novels Home Where She Belongs and Home Away From Home, books #1 and #2 of the Abbott Island series would live in a lighthouse, if she could. Instead, she and her husband are content to live in southwest Ohio and visit Lake Erie every chance they get. She adores her family and dog, indulges in dark chocolate, enjoys fiber arts, and baseball. Her life’s goal is to encourage and uplift through her writing.