Michele Drier - Author: "Novel Research" Interview

In 2011, when ebooks were just beginning to hit their stride on Amazon, Michele Drier and I met through an online writers' group, the Guppies chapter of Sisters in Crime, Inc. We had both dipped our toes into the phenomenon of electronic novels. SNAP: The World Unfolds was the debut novel of Michele's series "The Kandesky Vampire Chronicles."

Michele is a fifth generation Californian. During her career in journalism at daily newspapers in California, she won awards for investigative series. She is the past president of Capitol Crimes, a Sisters in Crime chapter; the Guppies chapter of SinC, current vice president of NorCal Sisters in Crime, and she co-chaired Bouchercon 2020.

Michele enjoyed journalism; but one thing she reveals that I didn't know about her was that she really wanted to be a Formula 1 driver and spent several years hanging around and driving sportscar time trials in California.

Because she has graciously accepted an invitation to discuss the novel research for her latest book, Tapestry of Tears (see Monday’s book review on this blog,) I now welcome author Michele Drier.

*****

Author Michele Drier

Greetings from California. Thanks so much for inviting me. 

As career choices go, if I had it to do over, I’d be an archeologist. I have a deep, abiding love of history, particularly medieval Europe. This love led me to the plot of Tapestry of Tears, the second book in the Stained Glass Mysteries.

Roz Duke, an internationally known stained glass artist, has accepted a commission to reproduce a section of the Bayeux Tapestry in glass for a university in Wisconsin.

To understand the history behind the 11th century depiction of William the Conqueror’s invasion of England, and to further study medieval stained glass, she takes a sabbatical from her studio in Oregon and moves to Hythe, a medieval city in the south of Kent, England. From here, it’s a ferry ride to northern France and the Tapestry Museum in Bayeux, France.

See: History of the Bayeux Tapestry - Bayeux Tapestry
University of Wisconsin Oshkosh (uwosh.edu)

An odd fact, the discovery of 30,000 pieces of medieval stained glass in the attics of Westminster Cathedral, was the impetus for getting Roz to England. 

And it’s a true fact, giving me the initial plot for Tapestry of Tears.

I’d been to Bayeux and spent the day at the Tapestry Museum and had been to the south of England a few times, including Hythe and the tiny town on Dymchurch. And on one trip, I stood on the cliffs overlooking Omaha Beach, where the Allied assault forces invaded France and broke Hitler’s hold on the world.

As I was writing, I went down the rabbit hole of Google a lot of times, checking and double-checking my recollections; I bought yet another book on the Tapestry; I looked up ferry times and crossings of the Channel (even priced the Chunnel but decided Roz was too cheap to spend that much money!); went through some of my old pictures and wore the pages in my European atlas to shreds checking on all the small roads and sites in Kent.

At one point in the book, I have Roz moving some of her belongings from north of London to Hythe with the help of Hal, a Kentish policeman. I turned to my trusty atlas, tracing their route on the M25 and found the town of Waltham Abbey, a convenient place to stop and spend the night.

As I Googled Waltham Abbey, I discovered they had a medieval cathedral which was the burial site of King Harold, who was defeated by William the Conqueror. Well, of course Roz had to visit it.

I love research and can spend far too many hours chasing leads and tidbits. In an earlier book, Labeled for Death, about vineyard workers found dead, I managed to wheedle a visit to the Wine Library at UC Davis. After interviewing one of the oenologists, I was taken to the stacks and watched as a librarian, wearing white cotton gloves, reverently placed a large (maybe 20” x 24”) loose-leaf book in front of me. It was sample wine grape leaves from 1870 with hand-written descriptions and was how they determined varieties. The same method (with pictures instead of actual leaves) is still used today at all the wineries in California.

On the whole, I think my years in journalism has led me to relish finding sources and unearthing facts—from large to small. At this late date, I doubt I’ll ever be an archeologist, but I can pretend as I follow link to link to link and tuck interesting facts away…or write them on sticky notes that I immediately misplace.

*****

Michele’s Amy Hobbes Newspaper Mysteries are Edited for Death, (called “Riveting and much recommended” by the Midwest Book Review), Labeled for Death and Delta for Death. A stand-alone, Ashes of Memories was published May 2017.

Her paranormal romance series, SNAP: The Kandesky Vampire Chronicles, was named the best paranormal vampire series of 2014 by PRG and she’s currently writing Book Eleven, SNAP: Pandemic Games.

Her new series is the Stained Glass Mysteries, Stain on the Soul and Tapestry of Tears.  She lives in Sacramento with her cat, Malley, and she’s working on the third book in the series, Resurrection of the Roses.

Visit her webpage, www.MicheleDrier.me

Or her Facebook page, ,http://www.facebook.com/AuthorMicheleDrier

Or find her on her author page at http://www.amazon.com/Michele-Drier/e/B005D2YC8G/

Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08P41FKJY or

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tapestry-of-tears-michele-drier/1138556280?ean=2940162911357

*****

Road Trip - Having Fun With Research #AtoZChallenge2021

  

Lake Michigan western shoreline - much colder than
Pacific Ocean at Waikiki Beach

If you’re like me, you enjoy the on-scene part of researching a novel.

 

Rocky trails to caves at Maribel in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin.

Talk about eerie! Fits right in with my story.

 

 

 

 

One year, during a trip to Wisconsin and Massachusetts, I spent most of my waking hours visiting sites, talking to people, driving around gathering information, and taking photographs that would support the story in my latest WIP.

 

 

Boiling brats in beer before grilling.

 

 

 

 

Food was an important part of my research, especially the bohemian kolatches.

 

It is debatable whether my research had gotten a bit out of hand. I gathered details for three separate projects. Still, even if not everything pans out, the visits with relatives and friends, with discussions over fabulous meals made the hours well-spent.

 

Silouetted Clouds on the Water - Shoto Lake



For me, Wisconsin and Massachusetts were all about water and food. My research also included such diverse topics as gun cartridges, fishing bait, environmental issues, and taste-testing Friday perch plates at every possible venue.  

The road trip was a research success. I was able to flesh out the stories for two Pepper Bibeau mysteries, Neshoto Junction Homicide and Blood Red Homicide.

You are welcome to check out my Pepper Bibeau mysteries in print and ebook format at Amazon.com. Reviews are always welcome.

Pepper Bibeau Mysteries (6 books) Kindle Edition (amazon.com)

*****

In the SinC/Hawaii Spotlight: Lori Tian Sailiata

In the spotlight for today's SinC/Hawaii interview is Lori Tian Sailiata whose writerly alter ego is Lara Britt. Lori is Vice President of Sisters in Crime/Hawaii and an enthusiastic blogger. She has developed a new website for SinC Hawaii, Facebook SinCHawaii Group and Facebook Page. She is also moderator of Tweet Chat for our group under the hashtag #SinCHI.

GAIL: Lori, you have mentioned something called “Whirled Peas Cafe.” I would love to hear the story behind the name. What inspired you to create the name, and does such a cafe actually exist?

LORI: For a couple years my girls and I lived in Spokane, Washington. I ran a small espresso bar/deli near the courthouse. The hours were perfect for me as a single mom. I would bundle the girls up ready for school, cook them breakfast at the deli while I was roasting the turkey for that day's sandwiches and whipping up three featured soups, then put them on the school bus. At two o'clock I went to volunteer for the last hour of their school day. We'd walk home together. After the normal nightly ritual of supper, homework, playtime and baths, it would be story time.

At that time Spokane was part of a program that gifted books to both school libraries and the public library. We read lots of books as per normal, but we also wrote reviews and in doing so earned dozens of books for both libraries. If you ever go into the Main Library in Spokane and flip open a jacket, don't be surprised to see our names inset. Whirled Peas Cafe was our small family's daydream place. The name came from a t-shirt shop that had on one side "Stop the Violins" (Stop the Violence) and Visualize Whirled Peas (World Peace) on the other. Whirled Peas Mysteries is a synthesis of our dreams, our experiences, and our sense of humor as well as our taste in art. The series is set in the Whirled Peas Cafe. Maybe if I'm lucky, it will be a brick and mortar that smells of great coffee, locally-sourced soups, and intriguing characters. (http://www.whirledpeasmysteries.com)

GAIL: Any setting with the name Whirled Peas Cafe could draw only intriguing characters! You are active with a group that uses a Twitter hash tag of #MNINB and #WSChat. What is the focus of this internet group?

LORI: #MNINB was the hashtag we devised when we joined our first Twitter chat as part of The 2012 April Platform Challenge developed by Robert Lee Brewer for his My Name Is Not Bob (MNINB) blog. Robert is an editor at Writer's Digest, but this was an effort of his personal blog.

His rules were that we needed to comment by at least posting a "done" after we completed a daily challenge for the month of April. By the middle of the month, the participants had bonded and had spun off activities to supplement Not Bob's material.

At the end of April, we declared ourselves "done but not over." This became the tagline of our "#MNINB April Platform Challengers." (http://notbobbers.wordpress.com/). Our ambitions to help each other with our writing outstripped what we could accomplish on this WordPress site and we are currently transitioning to our more permanent home, Wordsmith Studio. (http://www.wordsmithstudio.org) Each Tuesday, we hold two separate Twitter chats. Our moderator, Khara House, also uses Spotify to transcribe them and posts to our FaceBook fanpage. (https://www.facebook.com/WordsmithStudio)

GAIL: Hawaii is home to you, but you lived on the Mainland for awhile. Which states were you in and did your experiences there spark any ideas for future stories?

LORI: I've only been back in the Islands for a little more than a year. My history goes back many decades. My mother was stationed at Hickam Air Force Base back in the 1950s. (Well before I was born, thank you!) I grew up visiting the Islands multiple times throughout the years. I went to public school in suburban Chicago. My family is from Southernmost Illinois which is also known as the Appalachia of Illinois. The Cherokee Trail of Tears runs through my father's farm, land that my ancestors owned as the Cherokee made their way to Oklahoma. I grew up on old Indian tales. My grandfather's mother was Cherokee, born in Georgia and raised in Oklahoma. Also heard the settler's tales. From an early age I was interested in borderland places, places where folks from different backgrounds interact.

GAIL: What type of research is necessary for your writing and where is most of your research done?

LORI: A writer's archive is the whole of life. Research is in taking notice. Taking notice of the word choices and mannerisms of the Microneasian woman who works graveyard at the Waikiki 7-Eleven is as important to me as the information I find on the internet. I also have my favorite hangouts at University of Hawaii/Manoa, a handful of Hawaii State Library branches that I haunt, and of course, the Bishop Museum. I'm a docent at the Bishop. I always say I learn as much from our visitors as from anyone. There are no end of experts and wonderful archives. I have a series titled Writerly Nooks (http://larabritt.com/category/writerly-wednesdays/) on my blog where I show some of my favorite places to write and research.

GAIL: Of all the locations you have visited, where would you most like to spend your time writing and why?

LORI: The Big Island or Hawaii Island, as it's more frequently referred to these days. It is remote and has a slower pace than O'ahu. I can hole up and not be distracted. But if I'm looking for inspiration, there is plenty of that as well. International scientists do their research high atop Mauna Kea at the observatory, but others study the volcanic data spewing from Mauna Loa. Oceanographers study the local sea life. Physicists study geothermal and solar energy sources. Then the botanists and agriculturalists who are expert in local vanilla, coffee, cocoa, macadamia nuts, citrus, orchids, and regional teas...horses and cattle, lamas. So much going on and yet the pace is so wonderfully mellow.

Week #2 of THE NEXT BIG THING



Merit Jewel Range

THE NEXT BIG THING is a fun blog event of 10 questions. Laurie Hanan, author of the Louise Golden Mysteries http://westoftheequator.wordpress.com/ invited me to participate in the questionnaire. The event began here in Hawaii with our good friend Toby Neal, author of The Lei Crime Series http://www.tobyneal.net/

Here’s the plan:

***Answer ten questions about a current Work In Progress. (See below for full list of questions) ***Tag five other writers and link their blogs so we can all hop over and read their answers. It’s that simple.

I’ve chosen to answer one question per week with a goal of publishing the second novel in my Pepper Bibeau mystery series at the time I post the final question and answer.

Here is Question #2 of The Next Big Thing:

TNBT: Where did the idea for your novel, DIFFERENT IN DEGREE, come from?

GAIL: The idea for my second novel began to blossom while I edited the manuscript for my first novel. In one scene of FOR EVERY ACTION, Insurance Investigator Pepper Bibeau makes this comparison:

In my experience, genealogy research mirrors insurance investigation. Both require an interpretation of facts to fill in the gaps.

After re-reading those lines several times, I decided the second novel would include some of Pepper’s family members. Though Pepper was born in Hawaii, she moved to Wisconsin after the death of her father, an Army-Air Force pilot who dies in a plane crash when Pepper is four years old.

The adage, write what you know, applies here. Wisconsin is my home state, and I am most familiar with the towns settled along the shores of Lake Michigan. My niece once owned a farmhouse that had an old summer kitchen attached to the main kitchen. The floor was unfinished, a rickety wooden work table graced the center of the space, and cobwebs decorated a black cook stove against the back wall.

The disrepair of the room created in my mind a perfect final resting place for family skeletons. That thought sparked the idea for my next novel. Could deceit and murder be far behind?

And now, five awesome writers whose work you want to watch:

1. Stella Baker (Mystery) www.stellabaker.com

2. Maureen Gerber (Mystery/Suspense) http://mhgerberbooks.blogspot.com/

3. Ellen Stockdale Wolfe (Author and Artist) http://stockdalewolfe.myexpose.com

4. Erik Hanberg on Amazon (Mystery)

5. Michele Drier (Mystery/) http://www.amazon.com/Michele-Drier/e/B005D2YC8G/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1 

The full questionnaire for THE NEXT BIG THING:

What is the title of your book?

Where did the idea for the book come from?

What genre would your book fall under?
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Is your book published or represented?
How long did it take you to write?
What other books within your genre would you compare it to?
Which authors inspired you to write this book?
Tell us anything else that might pique our interest in your book.

http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Orchids-Crime-Series-ebook/dp/B006FBDHG2/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1341460044&sr=1-2&keywords=Blood+Orchid

Detective Stories

A detective story begins with a crime and ends with a solution. In the worlds of Sherlock Holmes and Nero Wolfe, the gray cells do much of the deducing. In today’s fast-paced world, exploits in the story's middle encourage a sequel, making tension equally important to the puzzle.

Though not a true example, as no crime is involved, a 16tth century novel, The Travels and Adventures of Three Princes of Sarendip illustrates the elements of detection. Three princes are asked to explain how they know a certain, unseen camel is blind in one eye, lame, and missing a tooth. They deduce the blindness is obvious because the camel eats grass from only one side of the track, even though the grass is thicker on the other; uneven hoof prints in the dust indicate a dragging leg and reveal the camel’s lameness; and lumps of partly chewed food left in the animal's path suggest a missing tooth. (You can substitute an elephant and several blind men.)

Edgar Allan Poe introduced the detective story. Decades later, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s adventures created a full-blown interest in detective novels.

Rex Stout and Erle Stanley Gardner were my first. Do you have a favorite?

Not Normal Cocktail Party Talk

The words in the title of this blog post are part of an answer I gave during my interview today with A.F. Stewart at her blog site.

Ms. Stewart is located in Nova Scotia, Canada. She is a writer who likes sci-fi and fantasy, mysteries and history. I am most appreciative that she agreed to hold this interview during my "Cherries Jubilee" blog tour. Please click on her blog site to read how the "cocktail" comment applies to my writing >>>> A.F. Stewart’s blog

If you would like to receive a free Smashwords download of my e-Book novel FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences, please include in your comment below a Jeopardy-style question for my "cocktail" answer.