THE MISSING INK Blog Tour with Karen E. Olson

Karen E. Olson, author of the Annie Seymour mysteries, has just released the first of her new, Tattoo Shop Mysteries series - THE MISSING INK. I was lucky enough to be able to read an advance copy, and I enjoyed every minute of it. It was very different for me, because I'd really grown to love Annie, who is a very different character from Brett Cavanaugh, Karen's new protagonist, but Brett grew on me quickly. She's very creative and whimsical, but she's also tenacious and, in some ways, much more sure of herself than Annie, from my point of view.

But who cares about my point of view when we've got Karen?

1. What did you enjoy the most about starting the new series?

I had so much fun coming up with new characters, new voices, a new setting. While I was sorry to be leaving Annie and New Haven behind, it was a real challenge and a pleasure to discover that I had more characters in my head than just the ones in the Annie series. It made me realize that I can write outside my comfort zone and be comfortable with it.

2. I know you had to take a trip to Vegas for “research” (just joking about putting it in quotation marks). Tell us about some interesting experiences from your research. Also, did you choose the inspiration for Versailles, etc., based on your trip, or were some of your locations, like the Venetian, set in place ahead of time?

I was in Vegas about 12 years ago for a couple of days, so I had a little bit of experience with it! But in the middle of writing THE MISSING INK I realized I needed to go there again, to see what had changed, to get a little more of the ambiance. We stayed at the MGM and spent a lot of time at the Venetian Grand Canal Shoppes. I’d already decided that Brett’s shop should be there, so I took a lot of pictures and notes. I added some foodie stuff, especially after having the fabulous crepes in Paris. Versailles sprouted from visiting all the crazy, themed resorts. I needed to create a resort, though, because I couldn’t have crimes occurring in real places! One place I hadn’t been to before was Red Rock Canyon, which is stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately it was 110 degrees in June and we couldn’t hike.

3. How was it to write more of an ensemble piece? While there was certainly a wonderful cast of characters in the Annie Seymour series, this series seems to put almost as much emphasis on secondary characters as on Brett. I thought the secondaries were a total hoot, by the way!

Annie is a loner, basically. She doesn’t have a huge circle of friends and that’s okay with her. But Brett is different in that she’s befriended her employees and has good relationships with them. I had great fun with Bitsy and Joel, and you’ll see more of Ace in PRETTY IN INK. I wanted to create more of a world with more characters this time around.

4. Did you go through withdrawal switching from a hard-swearing, hard-boiled reporter character to a Catholic schoolgirl tattooist who calls on her memories of Sister Mary Eucharista for behavior guidelines?

I love Annie, because I know her. I know people like her, and I’ve been like her at times. And I grew to love Brett, who is sort of the anti-Annie, except that she has the same tenacity. I wanted to create a character who was not a stereotype but still had an edge to her. And she’s happy with her life. She’s not grumpy. It’s been so great writing a character who has no angst!

5. They say that all artists paint self-portraits within each portrait they paint of others, and the same can be said for writers and their protagonists. Who is more “you” – Annie or Brett?

Annie started out more me, but grew away from me with each book as I found out more about her. I suppose she is more “me,” in that she’s got the career I had. But Brett is the good girl with a twist, and I’ve always wanted to be more of a rebel. Is that vague enough for you?

6. What are you enjoying most about setting the new series in a place you haven’t lived as opposed to writing about a place where you’re currently living?

Everyone loves Vegas. It’s so over the top, and I feel like my plots and characters can be over the top, too. I don’t have to stick with real locations if I don’t want to, which is fun, and when I was there last year I met a Vegas native who said that the landscape there changes every six months so don’t worry about being true to streets or hotels or restaurants or anything else. It was very freeing. In New Haven, I was locked in and felt an obligation to be as true to the city as I could. Vegas doesn’t care.

7. What is the one, key thing that people should know about Brett?

She is just a nice person with a job she loves that pays the bills and she just happens to get mixed up in solving crimes. As long as people suspend their disbelief about a tattooist turned crime solver, then I’m happy.

8. Are we going to see more of Simon? And do we really have to wait to April 2010 for PRETTY IN INK? Can we get a sneak preview of what Brett will be facing in PRETTY IN INK (other than hilarious names for cross-dressing strippers)?

Simon is not back in the next book. He was going to break her heart, and she knows that. But there is a new guy in PRETTY IN INK, which actually is now scheduled to come out in March. In PRETTY IN INK, Brett gets all caught up in the deaths of two drag queens.

Thanks so much for having me here today!

You can buy a signed copy of Karen's book, THE MISSING INK, by clicking here (Mystery Lovers Bookshop is an independent bookstore in Oakmont, PA), or for regular copies, go to your local, independent bookstore, or get it from any of the usual online or commercial outlets. In our area, it's carried at Nicola's Books, Aunt Agatha's and the big box stores.

Or...

You can WIN a copy of THE MISSING INK just by leaving a comment at the end of this post. You have until Sunday, July 19th at 10 p.m., E.D.T. to leave your comments. Cheers!

Bookmark July 15th: The Missing Ink Blog Tour

On Saturday, the Eatwrite family is taking a long awaited, much anticipated, vacation.

This means I will not be around much next week.

Tomorrow there will be a Local Love Friday - my wonderful, miracle-working chiropractor will be highlighted.

Then... silence.

Until - and this is very important news - JULY 15th.

Karen E. Olson, of Shot Girl fame, will be visiting us again to talk about her new book, The Missing Ink. It's wonderful, and very possibly the perfect beach read.




And then, again, Karen is wonderful, and chatting with her is always a hoot. (Plus, there will be a giveaway - natch).

Then... more silence - no What's Cooking Wednesday next week (except for cooking up discussion about The Missing Ink), no Local Love Friday for next week.

Maybe some beautiful pictures at some point... but we'll see.

See you tomorrow, and after that, happy week!

Shot Girl Blog Tour!

Karen E. Olson, author of the Annie Seymour mysteries and the upcoming, Vegas-based Ink series, is here to talk about her new release, Shot Girl.

I was so excited about Karen's visit, that I decided to have my first bloggy giveaway.

Yes, you can win your very own copy of Shot Girl just by leaving a comment below and I will enter your name to my random drawing (I'll announce the winner a week from today).

To whet your appetite, here's a teaser about Shot Girl from Karen's website www.kareneolson.com:

New Haven police reporter Annie Seymour has a talent for running into trouble. So it should come as no shock when her co-worker's bachelorette party at a local club turns into a crime scene. What is surprising is that the dead bar manager on the sidewalk outside happens to be Annie's ex-husband — and the bullet shells around his body match the gun she has in her car.

Coming face-to-face with her past, Annie delves into a conspiracy involving everyone from a male stripper to a shot girl. If she wants to get the story, she'll have to escape a killer . . . before she becomes the next headline.

You can also read the first chapter on Karen's website, and for those of you who know Annie, you'll be amazed to find her wearing stilettos. And that fact led to my first question:

Jen: So are the heels going to be a new look for Annie? I'm having a hard time with the chase/run thing. LOVED the first scene, though.

Karen: Annie is fashion challenged, but she does slip on another pair of high heeled sandals a little later in the book for what she hopes is a little dinner foreplay with Vinny.

Jen: Will Tom and Vinny ever kiss and make up, or are we going to see lots of testosterone swimming around in Annie's future?

Karen: Let's just say that everyone's taken care of at the end of SHOT GIRL.

Jen: What's up with Annie's fucking language? Did she ever serve as a Marine?

Karen: Annie works in a newsroom. I learned all that language myself as a young reporter. And when I worked as a copy editor at the paper in New Haven and we got a new computer system, a friend aptly said that its patron saint was St. Expletive. So anyone who says they've never heard such language in a newsroom is lying.

Jen: Okay, so you've been stuck with, er given the present of, Election Day as your release date, so I gotta ask - is Annie an Obama or McCain woman?

Karen: Annie is an objective newspaper reporter and would never divulge her personal political leanings in public. How's that for an evasive answer?

Jen: Will Annie ever learn that guns seem to get her in more trouble than they're worth?

Karen: If you haven't noticed, Annie doesn't actually ever shoot her gun in the first three books. I realized that myself and figured that in SHOT GIRL perhaps the gun should play a little bigger role. I mean, "shot" is in the title after all.

Jen: As a print journalist yourself for most of your career, do you advocate guns for all journalists? What about the society page writers? Maybe especially the society page writers?

Karen: No journalists should never carry a gun. It would be frightening. I did work at one point with a sports editor who kept a handgun in the glovebox of his car and we were terrified he'd go off the handle one night and go postal on us. He had a bit of a temper.

Jen: What's the one thing you most want my readers to know about SHOT GIRL, since I keep asking such inane questions?

Karen: Annie is an unreliable narrator in SHOT GIRL. Which means you shouldn't believe anything she says. And that's all I'll say.

Jen: I think it's safe to say you know New Haven pretty well. How is it writing a new series set in Vegas? Was this really a ploy to write off time at the craps tables?

Karen: I went to Vegas and didn't even gamble once. But I do get to write off my trip. Actually, writing about Vegas was incredibly freeing. I didn't have to worry about actual restaurants or intersections. I concentrated on the atmosphere, the heat, the glitz. Although I did manage to squeeze in my favorite fast food joint: In N Out Burgers, which we don't have here in Connecticut.

Jen: Can you tell us what will be coming up in the new series?

Karen: THE MISSING INK will be out in July. It features Brett Kavanaugh, a tattoo shop owner in Las Vegas, and her staff of tattooists. The plot centers around a missing woman. I've got a dwarf, guillotines, and a karaoke Elvis bar in it. It's great fun, but it's got an edge. It's not as chick-litty as I think it might look. The second, PRETTY IN INK, will be out sometime after that. It depends how fast I can write it before a pub date is tossed around. But that book will center on drag queens. I'm having a blast with these books.

Jen: Is this Annie's swansong, or will there be more Annie stories to look forward to? I must say, I'd miss Annie terribly.

Karen: Right now, SHOT GIRL is the last Annie book. Honestly, I'm not sure I could write another Annie book at the moment. I've got too many friends losing their jobs at newspapers, which are imploding. I think I'd have to either lay off Annie or have her take a buyout and it certainly wouldn't be funny anymore. Although someone suggested sending her to Vegas for a tattoo. So she might make a cameo at some point in the new series.

Jen: What are the First Offenders planning for THIS April Fools Day? You all really had me the last time. (They had a "break-up" post, which was hysterical, heartbreaking and... um... believable for certain gullible, types). Okay, so I'm just plain stupid, sometimes.

Karen: Do you really think we plan that far ahead? :)

Now run and get your own copy of Shot Girl by clicking this link or win your own copy by entering the drawing by leaving a comment below.

Seven Random Things about Me and Annie Seymour

I was tagged for the Seven Random Things meme, and I'm so rude I can't even remember who tagged me, but I know I've seen it on many of my friends' blogs, so I invite you to click on my blogroll for any random blog you've not yet read. They're all great blogs, so you'll have fun!

Tomorrow is going to be a big day around here because we have the lovely Karen E. Olson, author of the Annie Seymour mystery series, coming to open her blog tour for her latest Annie Seymour - Shot Girl. I wanted to remind you about our special event and giveaway(!!!), so I thought I'd combine the two.

Seven random facts about moi (and Annie... and Karen):

1. I received Karen's last book, Dead of the Day, because my son wanted to find a mystery book to get me for Christmas and it was the only cover he really liked. He picked it out randomly, I'm sorry to say.

2. When I opened it on Christmas morning, I was not enthusiastic, because I misread the back cover and I thought it was a "crime" novel. (I LOVE mysteries - crime novels, not so much).

3. I posted here about various books I'd gotten for Christmas and ones I'd read and loved. (Hadn't even thought to pick up Dead of the Day, but I mentioned it in case C saw my blog - I didn't want him to get his feelings hurt).

4. Karen showed up in my comments section! Yikes! THE author! I figured I'd better give the book a shot. I always love to support authors, and I was completely flabbergasted that she'd stopped by and... seemed so nice.

5. Once I started Dead of the Day, I couldn't put it down. I LOVED it. All the ingredients I adore were in one book: a. a powerful, but flawed, heroine, b. lots of local color (in this case, New Haven), c. humor, d. GOOD romance (nothing soppy) e. social causes (immigration issues were a key component of Dead of the Day). Wow! I immediately got Karen's first two books in the series, Sacred Cows and Second Hand Smoke.

6. I became an Annie fanatic and became a some time correspondent of Karen's. I also discovered several other authors of wonderful series through her group blog, First Offenders. (If you haven't checked it out and you love mysteries - go! Now!)

7. I'm totally jazzed about hosting Karen tomorrow. I'm totally jazzed about reading Shot Girl. And I'm totally jazzed about giving away a copy of Shot Girl so that others will become Annie Seymour fans, too. (And Karen E. Olson fans).

Don't forget to stop by and leave a comment!

Book Talk

Some time ago, I posted here about all of the fabulous books on my nightstand, and how much fun I was going to have reading them.

Well, the best plans of mice and men...

I haven't read things exactly as I had planned to, but I have had some delightful reading experiences since January, and I'd love to share them with you.

First of all, I read that mysterious book that C chose by virtue of its cover: Dead of the Day, by Karen E. Olson. It's pitched as a crime novel, and while it certainly is, I think it goes outside that genre to be even more than that. The protagonist, Annie Seymour, is catnip for me. She's smart, witty, hardboiled, and flawed. Just the kind of character stew that I go for. Karen Olson also fills the book with great regional touches about her native New Haven, and that's also a major plus in my eyes. The plot line concerns cross-cultural issues, as well, (a favorite of mine in any setting) so I was in reading heaven. The novel is well-written, compelling, and makes you think. It's a complete delight, and I'd recommend it to anyone who loves mysteries. My only caveat is that I'd read Karen Olson's other books in the series first, because some character development had already occurred by this point, and I would have preferred to discover those details bit by bit. I'm definitely going back and reading the first two: Sacred Cows and Secondhand Smoke. Karen is also part of a group of four mystery writers who have a fabulous blog on writing (among other things) called First Offenders. If you love writing, I'd highly recommend checking it out.

The second book is getting all kinds of press and hype. Many times I read these books and am puzzled by the accolades. Not so this time. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen is sublime. It's the story of a young man on the verge of becoming a veterinarian, who loses everything when his parents meet an early death during the Depression. He ends up joining a completely corrupt circus, and we follow his passions and adventures there. The framing device for this book is the narrator as a 92-year-old, now reduced to living in a nursing home. While any of these elements could make this maudlin or depressing, it's not. It's an anthem about life during hard times, told with humor and glory. Simply fabulous stuff!

The last book was already mentioned in last Sunday's post. My friend, Marianne Arkins, of Reading, Writing, and Stuff that Makes Me Crazy, released her first novel last week through Samhain Publishing - One Love for Liv. Since I'm hosting her as part of her blog tour on March 5th, I thought I'd better get cracking and read her novel pronto. Now, I am not a romance fan. I'm kind of romantic, but when I get around the romance genre my skin tends to crawl. I've read several of Marianne's stories, and I'm happy to say that not only does her work not have that effect on me, it also makes me laugh hysterically as well as cry at times. (Not in One Love for Liv, though - that's a laugh all the way). Marianne has written, about herself, that she doesn't really have a romantic bone in her body, and this may be why I find her romances so much fun. They are told with a wink and a smile, and her characters are real and touching. I won't go into great detail here (because I'm sure we will on March 5th), but I just had a blast reading this book. Marianne's friend Allie Bonaface made her a wonderful trailer, so if you want to know what Liv's about, go here to see it.

I'm still reading Bangkok Haunts by John Burdett and I've been reading both Two Meatballs in an Italian Kitchen by Pino Luongo and Mark Strausman and Dolce Italiano by Gina DePalma for research for my novel. I'm also hoping to start The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken by Laura Schenone within the next week or so.

Happy reading!