Cozy News: November 2023
Last month’s meeting was a hoot! We played “bobbing for apples,” and Donna won – with the most apples – the book Witch’s Garden. Yippee for her and all of our contestants! This month, on November 26th, we’re playing “pluck the turkey.” Our book is Peppermint Barked by Leslie Budewitz. It’s apropos for the season and takes place in Seattle, Washington.
You’ll enjoy the read. In December, we’ll be reading a short story, The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, an Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot short story. In addition to having a good time discussing the story, we’re asking each member to share information about a cozy mystery book that we haven’t read. Giving information about another cozy mystery will be fun for each of us to hear. Another suggestion for a cozy is always welcome to cozy mystery readers!
The new year will start with an author visiting us. Sue Jaffarian’s books about Odelia Grey are cozies, but also funny. It’s going to be a wonderful author visit. We can find out how the author thought up the idea of the protagonist, what started her writing career, and what she’s presently doing. We have to thank Rosemarie Shamieh for the contact with Sue. Thank you, thank you, Rosemarie.
There’s a great reading journal on Etsy for only $1.50 for the next several days. Look under Oh Gloria Shop. You have to download it, but the reading journal has some cute ideas and I plan to use it. I read so many books that sometimes (not always so my Prevegen days are still ahead of me!) I get the characters from one book mixed up with another book’s characters. The journal should help me keep it all straight. Another good find is the advertisement for inexpensive and often classic cozies on Murder and Mayhem. I have to admit, sometimes the books are cheap enough that I go nuts with my purchases and then realize that I have oodles of books to read. This week there were several for $1.99 through $2.99. Bargains, all of them. The contest for first chapter is still on. If you’re still toying with the idea of writing a first chapter of your own cozy mystery book, start writing. Chapters don’t have a page number requirement. This is your chance to be your own author. Try it out! We don’t judge grammar or spelling. Have fun. There’s still plenty of time to participate. When I write I usually plan it out while I’m doing the dishes or in the shower. My head has permission to wander. There are prizes for the winners – one for each paragraph that you’d be using as the beginning of your chapter.