Guest Blogger...Elaine Faber!

ROCCO’S GUEST BLOGGER

ELAINE FABER!

What is a Cozy Mystery?

Elaine Faber

The protagonist (main character) is usually a woman with an interesting job or hobby that provides unexpected opportunities to solve a mystery. Readers often share the character’s hobby, e.g., knitting, baking, gardening, and loves to find knitting instructions, recipes or household hints included in the story. Mrs. Odboddy shares her recipe for oxtail stew in Mrs. Odboddy-Hometown Patriot.

Often, the protagonist has a friend connected with the police department, giving her access to legal information. She loves animals and often has a dog or cat. My protagonist always has a cat. In my cat mystery books, part of the story is narrated through Thumper’s point of view.

The cozy mystery likely takes place in a community setting providing frequent contact with the population (e.g., small town, college campus, coffee house, bakery, horse ranch, garden club, etc.) Cozies usually have a good deal of humor mixed into the story line. Mrs. Odboddy will have you laughing out loud.

Often written as a series, a cozies’ emphasis is on character development. Readers become emotionally attached and want to spend more time with that character and community. I have written three cat mysteries. Mrs. Odboddy–Hometown Patriot is the first of three planned.

There is never, never any graphic sex. Any suggested sex is always behind closed doors.

No explicit violence. Any murder occurs off screen or in the past. God forbid that we should ever harm a child or kill a cat. I do make you worry…but never fear…it won’t happen in my cozy mysteries.

No excessive profanity. Therefore, the novel is suitable for those who prefer a cleaner read or for younger readers.

Readers want to play along and attempt to solve the crime with the protagonist, so we provide multiple hints and clues. These are called red herrings…

Lastly, a cozy will present a murder or crime, but is written with a lighter touch; never a situation that lingers to trouble your mind or keep you awake at night. When reading a cozy mystery, you can leave your troubles behind, escape in a story where the good guy prevails and the no-good-nicks never win. What’s not to love?

Mrs. Odboddy-Hometown Patriot: Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/hdbvzsv

Agnes Odboddy experiences rationing, volunteers at the Ration Stamp Office, tends her Victory Garden and keeps chickens in the bathroom as she fights the war from the home front. She is knee-deep in a black market ration book scam, and when the watch tower burns down, she agrees to take the blame to keep a National Security secret.

Then, an old lover from WWI returns, wanting to re-ignite their romance and searching for a million dollars in missing Hawaiian money.

When Mrs. Roosevelt comes to Newbury to attend a funeral and Agnes’s fears become reality, she must prove she is, indeed, a warrior on the home front.

Look for Elaine’s other Black Cat Mysteries at Amazon. Black Cat’s Legacy, Black Cat and the Lethal Lawyer, and Black Cat and the Accidental Angel. Thumper, the cat with his ancestor’s memories, tackles a California cold case murder, a Texas embezzling lawyer and skullduggery at an emu farm in the Sierra Nevada foothills.

Elaine lives in No. California with her husband and four housecats, the inspiration for the Black Cat Mysteries. Elaine denies any resemblance between quirky Mrs. Odboddy and her own personality.

Elaine.Faber@mindcandymysteries.com (e-mail)

http://www.mindcandymysteries.com  (Website)