BOOK TOUR
I'm so excited to be a stop on the blog tour for author
BAMBOOZLED
Book 2 in the Mah Jongg Mysteries
by Barbara Barrett
Essential oils distributor Dorcas Wiley is the boss everyone loves to hate. So when she turns up dead, killed by her own trophy, disgruntled saleswoman Cathy Broderick is the obvious suspect in her murder. Despite opportunity, motive and incriminating evidence, Cathy declares her innocence and enlists her mah jongg pals—Sydney Bonner and her cronies Marianne, Micki and Kat—to help save her from the death penalty.
Hot off a recent and nearly deadly investigation, the women are cautious about putting themselves in peril again. Syd’s spouse isn’t thrilled about another mystery in their lives, either, but he can’t resist the plea of Cathy’s husband. Soon, Syd is leading the way as they tangle with grumpy salespeople, the victim’s estranged husband and boyfriend, a mysterious housekeeper, a litigious customer, an annoyed sheriff and Cathy’s own arrogant lawyer.
The women have their own issues to deal with in their central Florida town of Serendipity Springs. Kat faces a health challenge, Micki fields a mysterious inquiry from her ex, Marianne has a chaotic anniversary and Syd wrestles with her husband over who’s really in charge. But nothing puts everyday life into perspective like the moment when their investigation brings them face to face with danger.
This cozy mystery, the second of the Mah Jongg Mystery series, features four retired amateur sleuths who live in a small Florida town, all female and all friends who play the game of mah jongg together. Though they don't set out to investigate murder, others have started looking to them to help investigate homicides and questionable accidents. In this story, Sydney Bonner again takes the lead, although her husband, Trip, insists on coming along to protect her. They also turn to their friends for help. Though this series features four protagonists, the others will take the lead in subsequent stories. Two are married, one is divorced and the fourth, who has been single all her life while she tended to her ailing mother, now finds herself the object of the sheriff's attention in this series.
The four don't seek out murder; somehow the circumstances and those affected drag them in. Meanwhile, as they attempt to gather information, life goes on in their community in such activities as a social group for those over 50, numerous stops at the local coffeehouse, and even a shopping trip to Naples. Sydney's husband, Trip, and her friend Marianne Putnam's husband, Beau, are golf buddies who spend many a day on the course. When not there, Trip is busy seeking to build a new post retirement life, and Beau is often prevailed upon to join in Trip's latest activity, which in this book is planning a repositioning cruise. Kat Faulkner has lived a frugal life until winning big in a lottery shortly after her mother's death; suddenly, Kat has money and doesn't know how to spend it. But her divorced friend and freelance writer, Micki Demetrius, does, even if it's to guide Kat through a makeover and wardrobe change for her lounge act.
Hot off a recent and nearly deadly investigation, the women are cautious about putting themselves in peril again. Syd’s spouse isn’t thrilled about another mystery in their lives, either, but he can’t resist the plea of Cathy’s husband. Soon, Syd is leading the way as they tangle with grumpy salespeople, the victim’s estranged husband and boyfriend, a mysterious housekeeper, a litigious customer, an annoyed sheriff and Cathy’s own arrogant lawyer.
The women have their own issues to deal with in their central Florida town of Serendipity Springs. Kat faces a health challenge, Micki fields a mysterious inquiry from her ex, Marianne has a chaotic anniversary and Syd wrestles with her husband over who’s really in charge. But nothing puts everyday life into perspective like the moment when their investigation brings them face to face with danger.
This cozy mystery, the second of the Mah Jongg Mystery series, features four retired amateur sleuths who live in a small Florida town, all female and all friends who play the game of mah jongg together. Though they don't set out to investigate murder, others have started looking to them to help investigate homicides and questionable accidents. In this story, Sydney Bonner again takes the lead, although her husband, Trip, insists on coming along to protect her. They also turn to their friends for help. Though this series features four protagonists, the others will take the lead in subsequent stories. Two are married, one is divorced and the fourth, who has been single all her life while she tended to her ailing mother, now finds herself the object of the sheriff's attention in this series.
The four don't seek out murder; somehow the circumstances and those affected drag them in. Meanwhile, as they attempt to gather information, life goes on in their community in such activities as a social group for those over 50, numerous stops at the local coffeehouse, and even a shopping trip to Naples. Sydney's husband, Trip, and her friend Marianne Putnam's husband, Beau, are golf buddies who spend many a day on the course. When not there, Trip is busy seeking to build a new post retirement life, and Beau is often prevailed upon to join in Trip's latest activity, which in this book is planning a repositioning cruise. Kat Faulkner has lived a frugal life until winning big in a lottery shortly after her mother's death; suddenly, Kat has money and doesn't know how to spend it. But her divorced friend and freelance writer, Micki Demetrius, does, even if it's to guide Kat through a makeover and wardrobe change for her lounge act.
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With Barbara
LKBR: Thank you for being here today, Barbara!
BB: Thank you for the invitation. I am very
pleased with this series, so I enjoy every opportunity to talk about it.
LKBR: Please
tell us a bit about your book/series.
BB: The
Mah Jongg Mystery series features four senior sleuths who live in the fictional
central Florida town of Serendipity Springs. True to the series title, they
play mah jongg together weekly and as a result have become good friends. They
also have a knack for getting involved, unofficially, of course, in certain
murder investigations related to some of their mah jongg friends. All four are
the protagonists. In the first two books, Sydney Bonner, is the “lead”; in Bamboozled, her husband, Trip, partners
up with her, despite his earlier objections to being involved in such dangerous
business. In future books, others in the group will be featured.
LKBR: How did
you come up with the concept?
BB: They
say, “write what you know.” This is one instance in which I followed that
advice. Most cozies feature a hook or premise for the series. I wanted
something I both knew and that little had been written about. That’s why I
turned to mah jongg. I started playing the game nine years ago as a way to meet
people in my new home town. I laughed at myself at the time, because until then
I’d thought of it as an old ladies’ game and I certainly didn’t fall in that
category…yet. But once I learned the basics, I fell in love with it. I’ve been
playing it ever since, often two times a week. I wanted to come up with a way
to incorporate women amateur sleuths, so when the time came for me to set my
writing of contemporary romances aside to write cozy mysteries, this all came
together.
Each book
title uses a mah jongg term. There are three suits of tiles: craks, bamboo, and
dots, thus the title for this second book.
LKBR: What are
your future plans for this series? Any hints or spoilers you can give us about
the next book?
BB: Right
now, my plans are to finish Book 3 in the series and then take a break to
return to my UnderWright Productions romance series and finish Books 4 and 5 of
that. Once that is accomplished, I will take stock of my writing career and
decide where I want to go from there. I love this mah jongg series, so the most
likely future direction will be to keep writing it. I love these four
characters, and there is so much more to explore with them.
Book 3, Connect the Dots, is partially written.
Once again, it is about the death of someone close to one of their mah jongg
buddies. This time a son. Micki Demetrius takes the lead in this one, although
the other three are there assisting her. The premise behind this book is a
condo in a new development that wasn’t finished properly and the owner’s quest
to get those flaws repaired after she has taken occupancy.
LKBR: Is
writing an energizing experience, or does it take a lot out of you?
BB: Yes
and yes. I try to write a little every day. When that isn’t possible, it makes
me antsy. I need to be writing. On the other hand, several hours in the chair
does take a lot out of me. I try to walk to reenergize in between writing
stints. One benefit is that it gives me time to think through where I’ve been
and where I want to go with the story.
LKBR: Once you knew you wanted to be a
published writer, who was the first person you reached out to for help? (Such
as a publisher, or author)
BB: My husband, because I wanted
his support. This undertaking would not only be time-consuming but also costly
(I’ve lost track of how many laptops and printers I’ve gone through.) He has
been great, especially now that I’m self-publishing and must continue to invest
in my work.
The next person was a group, my
local chapter of Romance Writers of America, Iowa Romance Novelists. I’d been
writing on my own a few years without much success. Once I attended one of
their meetings I knew I was home, that these were my people. Through what I
learned at their meetings, I was able to hone my craft.
LKBR: What sort of research do you
do for your books? Is it more computer based or hands on?
BB: Probably more
computer-based with a lot of Internet searches. For Bamboozled, which features the essential oils business, I started
there, because I’d never used them. I learned how many different kinds there
were from that. Then I discovered that a mah jongg friend sold for one line. I
spent time with her learning not only about the oils but also how the business
was organized. My daughter helped, too, because she has been using essential
oils for some time and is very positive about their effectiveness.
LKBR: What is your
writing process? Place, time of day, by the hour or word count?
BB: For my
first books, I was so impatient to get going I just started writing. I’d get
about three chapters into the book and realize I didn’t know where I was going.
By then, though, I was enchanted with my characters, so I had to figure out how
to proceed using them. Early in my writing career I discovered Debra Dixon’s Goal, Motivation and Conflict. It was
like turning on the lights in a dark room. I realized that, although I had a
good feel for my characters, what their story was and where they were going was
less defined in my mind. GMC made me stop before I got very far into the story
and lay out not only what Point A and Point Z were but also how to go from the
first to the end.
So my process starts with the
GMC “grid”: what does the character want (Goal), why does she want it?
(Motivation), and what is keeping her from getting it? (Conflict). It’s not an
easy process for me; it takes several revisions to arrive at the “essence” of
my story.
LKBR: How do you come up with character
names?
BB: My process for naming characters goes
several directions. First, I want the names to be memorable and “easy on the
eyes” when reading them. Second, I try to make the character names fitting of
that character’s personality. With this series, to me, Sydney is a more
powerful name than Marianne or Kat, which is want I intend for these
characters. Micki, though also strong, seems a bit more whimsical, and that’s
who she is. Sydney and Micki can also be masculine names. Kat’s full name is
Katrina, which she uses in her club act and which she is called by her
boyfriend. Marianne reflects the promise I made to a good friend to use her
name in one of my books; I spelled it differently though, to differentiate
between my character and my friend. Third, though I do have a Marianne and a
Micki, I try not to have characters whose names start with the same letter or
sound alike. Finally, I try not to repeat names from other books, even the
secondary characters; the list of names to avoid grows longer with each new
book.
LKBR: Is it difficult to write
characters of the opposite sex? Do you have someone you use for advice?
BB : It isn’t difficult. Maybe I’m not
checking enough. I just write what makes sense to me. On occasion, I may ask my
spouse or son for advice but not very often.
LKBR: Do you
read reviews of your books? If you do, and a review is bad, what effect does it
have on you? (I know some reviews are mean as opposed to constructive.)
BB: I
read some but not all, because yes, they do get to me. I don’t need the
negative vibes. On the other hand, when there’s a good review, those words stay
with me for days and on occasion pop up on my website.
LKBR: What are
3 things readers may not know about you?
BB: 1. I
used to sew most of my own clothes, back in the days when I wore mostly dresses
and skirts and blouses to work. Last summer, I bought a new sewing machine
after using my other one over three decades. I’m still learning how to use all
the buttons and whistles, but so far I’ve made several things for my grandchildren
and am now working on pillow cases.
2. My son
appeared in the movie, “The Bridges of Madison County,” which was shot not too
far from our home. Since he was under eighteen, my husband and I got to be on
set with him. I got to see Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood up close and in
person.
3. I am
working on a screenplay adapting my romantic comedy, Driven to Matrimony. Check out my Pinterest page on that book to
see who I had in mind for the four roles at one time.
LKBR: Where can
readers go to learn more about you and your books?
BB: Website: http://www.barbarabarrettbooks.com
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/bbarrettbooks
Pinterest:
https://pinterest.com/barbarabarrett7
Subscribe
to my cozy mystery newsletter: https://www.subscribepage.com/BBCozies
LKBR: Thank you
so much, Barbara for letting us get
to know you better!
BB: And
thank you again for providing me with this chance to acquaint your readers with
my cozy mysteries. I encourage comments and questions.
Barbara Barrett started reading mysteries when she was pregnant with her first child to keep her mind off things like her changing body and food cravings. When she’d devoured as many Agatha Christies as she could find, she branched out to English village cozies and Ellery Queen.
Later, to avoid a midlife crisis, she began writing fiction at night when she wasn’t at her day job as a human resources analyst for Iowa State Government. After releasing eleven full-length romance novels and one novella, she returned to the cozy mystery genre, using one of her retirement pastimes, the game of mah jongg, as her inspiration. Not only has it been a great social outlet, it has also helped keep her mind active when not writing.
Bamboozled, the second book in her “Mah Jongg Mystery” series, features four friends who play mah jongg together and share otherwise in each other’s lives. None of the four is based on an actual person. Each is an amalgamation of several mah jongg friends with a lot of Barbara’s imagination thrown in for good measure. The four will continue to appear in future books in the series.
Anticipating the day when she would write her first mystery, she has been a member of the Mystery/Romantic Suspense chapter of Romance Writers of America for over a decade. She credits them with helping her hone her craft.
Barbara is married to the man she met her senior year of college. They have two grown children and eight grandchildren.
Author Links
Website – http://www.barbarabarrettbooks.com
Twitter – www.twitter.com/bbarrettbooks
Pinterest – pinterest.com/barbarabarrett7
GoodReads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8181756.Barbara_Barrett
Subscribe Cozy Newsletter https://www.subscribepage.com/BBCozies
Purchase Links
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
June 28 – Valerie's Musings - REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 28 – Babs Book Bistro - SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
June 29 – The Power of Words – REVIEW
June 29 – Laura's Interests – REVIEW
June 30 - A Blue Million Books – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 30 - FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
June 30 - The Book Diva's Reads – SPOTLIGHT, GIVEAWAY
July 1 – A Wytch's Book Review Blog - REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW
July 1 – cherylbbookblog – REVIEW, GIVEAWAY
July 1 – A Holland Reads - SPOTLIGHT
July 2 – Ruff Drafts – GUEST POST
July 2 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW
July 3 – Teresa Trent Author Blog - CHARACTER GUEST POST, GIVEAWAY
July 3 – Mallory Heart's Cozies – REVIEW
July 4 – Varietats - REVIEW, GUEST POST
July 5 – Mysteries with Character – GUEST POST
July 5 – Island Confidential – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
July 6 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST
July 6 – Fiction Obsession – REVIEW
July 6 – Christa Reads and Writes - SPOTLIGHT
July 7 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW, GIVEAWAY
July 7 – Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers – SPOTLIGHT
July 8 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
July 8 – Lisa Ks Book Review – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
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Thanks, Lisa. Happy Sunday!
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