(Mason's Memo: Hi all, just wanted to let everyone know who the winner is for this wonderful giveaway. The winner was randomly chosen from the comments by Cleo. Join me in giving a huge CONGRATULATIONS to Rupal Desai. Here's the winning comment:
I
messaged you a few years ago on FB to tell you how much your books
meant to me. That holds true today. This one was absolutely amazing.
Thank you for bringing Clare into my life. I met her when I was 14 and
nearly 10 years later, she’s helped me grow every step of the way. And I’m getting married! -Rupal)
I am always thrilled to welcome author Cleo Coyle back to Thoughts in Progress. It means there’s a new Coffeehouse mystery to savor and a chance for you to win an awesome giveaway.
But first, I can’t welcome Cleo (husband and wife team
Marc and Alice) to Thoughts without saying an enormous THANKS to Alice for her encouragements when I first thought of
entering the world of blogging. In fact, she was the first person to tell me I
should be blogging. Thanks for introducing me to a wonderful world of people,
Alice.
Now, please join me in giving a huge welcome to Cleo as
we learn a bit about how this amazing series continues to grow and entertain
us. Welcome, Cleo.
Longevity is a tricky prospect in this “hit-it-and-quit-it”
culture. Keeping our Coffeehouse Mystery series going for 15 years and 17 titles at a traditional publisher has
been no easy feat. My husband and I could write an entire book about our
journey and what we’ve learned—but for the space of this post on Mason’s wonderful
blog, we’ll narrow it down to a few Thoughts (in Progress).
In our experience, the first sercret to series
longevity is serving the reader new ideas about old friends. While the core personality
traits of our characters remain consistent (which is vital), the relationships
they have with each other change and evolve over time. With every book, we also
try to bring fresh “dishy” details to the storytelling table, giving readers something
new to learn or understand about the characters they’ve come to think of as close
friends. What made Mike Quinn become a cop? How did Clare and her ex-husband
first meet? Why does the elegant octogenairan owner of the Village Blend know what
it’s like to be arrested and thrown in jail?
Another secret to a long-running series is keeping
things real. We’re writing fiction, of course. When we say “real,” we’re
talking about a solid grounding in believability. And, by the way, achieving
that feeling of fictional people, places, and events being “real” applies
whether you’re writing about a corner café or a galaxy far, far away—as any SF
or fantasy writer will tell you!
Our readers often ask us to write faster. It’s a
beautiful compliment, but writing with authenticity and authority takes
time—and we always take that time. We write and rewrite until we feel that
vital grounding of believability is present, until the dialog crackles, characters
are well-defined, and a compelling storyline comes alive.
Finally, no matter what sort of fiction we end up spinning,
we always begin with research into a world of facts. For
our latest Coffeehouse Mystery, Shot
in the Dark, Marc and I researched dozens of topics—from
designer drugs to French sandwiches; from the Groovy Murders of 1967 to Jimi
Hendrix’s favorite foods. The actual birth of the book, however, began with a
single factoid, a simple point of information we discovered about New York’s café
and restaurant scene.
As managers of these establishments will tell you, mobile phone dating has
become a big contributor to their bottom lines. When we learned that, we knew our
fictional Village Blend coffeehouse would be no different.
Consequently, we decided to show our readers what would happen when the
modern “dating app” craze descended on our landmark coffeehouse. The story we came
up with is a fun and fast-paced piece of crime fiction—and, by design, it goes
beyond fiction, giving readers real food for thought about the impact of
technology on our culture, our relationships, and ourselves.
How we specifically developed the book’s multilayered plot with its
twists, turns, and surprises would take a dozen more blog posts to explain, so
we’ll stop here and simply say, thank you
for reading this post today—and thanks especially to the wonderful Mason Canyon
for hosting us.
If you’re new to our Coffeehouse Mysteries, don’t hesitate to pick up Shot in the Dark.
All our books can be read as standalone stories; and, if you like one, you’ll
have 16 more to enjoy.
As for our series’ longevity, we’re as excited as ever to continue this
journey with our characters and our readers. (Another secret to keeping things
fresh, real, and alive—find the joy in writing every book.) Now that Shot is published, we’re at work on finding
that joy in our 18th Coffeehouse Mystery, coming in 2019.
The
Coffeehouse Mysteries Book Trailer
CHECKLIST OF TITLES (Books in Order):
Click here
to download a free title checklist (like above) with mini summaries of all 17 of Cleo
Coyle’s bestselling Coffeehouse Mysteries and her 6 Haunted Bookshop Mysteries.
 |
| Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini, aka Cleo Coyle |
CLEO’S NEWSLETTER: Fun contests, bonus recipes, book news, and videos.
To sign up, simply write an e-mail that says “sign me up” and send it to CoffeehouseMystery@gmail(dot)com
CLEO COYLE’S PRIZE PACKAGE GIVEAWAY
* An autographed copy of SHOT IN THE DARK in its beautiful hardcover first edition.
* An
autographed set of Cleo Coyle’s collectible recipe cards.
* A
sturdy, canvas Coffeehouse Mystery tote bag with a favorite saying of Clare’s
octogenarian employer, Madame: “Survive everything. And do it with style.” And…
* A
beautiful porcelain Gimme Coffee cup and saucer, make in Italy
Cleo, thanks so much for
visiting with us today and sharing this insight into the longevity of this fascinating series. The fact that the
characters seem like old friends is just one of the many reason I can’t wait
for the next installment as soon as I finish the newest release. I have also
learned so much about coffee from Clare and the gang, not to mention the tasty
treats that are shared.
Thanks everyone for
stopping by today and visiting with Cleo. What do you think about longevity in a series? What keeps you going back to a series book
after book?
