Think Interview

I'd like to welcome Cassidy Salem to the blog today. Cassidy writes the Adina Donati Mystery series.

Kathy: Setting plays such an important role in a mystery. How did you choose Washington DC as the setting for Think Murder?

CS: I wanted to choose a location with an international and metropolitan flavor. Besides, Washington D.C is one of my favorite cities. I spent a few years there immediately after college, and remember it well.

Kathy: You enjoy historical fiction. Do you have a favorite time period?

CS: That’s a tough question. If we are talking about American history, then the Civil War period. But I also like books set in 18th century Europe – A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is one of my absolute favorites.


Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

CS: I enjoy all kinds of crime fiction, including traditional mysteries, police procedurals, and cozies. Cozies are fun and usually entertaining. I enjoy trying to follow the plots set forth by other writers in hopes of identifying the culprit.


Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

CS: Not yet.


Kathy: Tell us about your series.

CS: Think Murder is the first novel in the Adina Donati Mystery Series, a series of standalone mysteries featuring a young college graduate and her experiences living alone in Washington, D.C.


Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?

CS: I guess Adina would be my favorite character – she is independent and determined. I also really like her supportive friends, Bruce and Michelle. (They will be back in the second book.)


Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

CS: The decision to write a novel was my way of challenging myself. After I had completed it, publishing was the natural next step for me.


Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?

CS: Maya Angelou, Agatha Christie, Mark Twain, and John Grisham.


Kathy: What are you currently reading?

CS: My son complains that I read too many mysteries so in a departure from my cozy mystery addiction, I am reading “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.


Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?

CS: I love music – almost all genres – and I sing in an a cappella ensemble.


Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.

CS: I probably shouldn’t admit it – Diet Coke, chocolate, peanut butter, and ice cream. Now you know where Adina’s terrible eating habits come from.


Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?

CS: I have just started working on the second book in the Adina Donati Mystery Series.


Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

CS: The immense sense of accomplishment as I hold the final published version of the book in my hand.