I'm happy to welcome Alexia Gordon to Cozy Up With Kathy. Alexia writes the Gethsemene Brown Mystery series.
Kathy: In MURDER IN G MAJOR Gethsemene Brown moves into a haunted cliff-side cottage in southwestern Ireland. Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had a supernatural experience?
AG: I'm ambivalent about ghosts. I've never personally encountered one nor had a supernatural experience. However, some close family members, devout Christians not given to flights of fancy, experienced supernatural happenings. I can't dismiss their reports nor explain them away. Do I believe in ghosts? Maybe.
Kathy: In MURDER IN G MAJOR Gethsemene Brown moves into a haunted cliff-side cottage in southwestern Ireland. Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had a supernatural experience?
AG: I'm ambivalent about ghosts. I've never personally encountered one nor had a supernatural experience. However, some close family members, devout Christians not given to flights of fancy, experienced supernatural happenings. I can't dismiss their reports nor explain them away. Do I believe in ghosts? Maybe.
Kathy: Gethsemane is a classical musician. Do you enjoy classical music? Do you have a favorite composer? Have you studied and instrument?
AG: I love classical music. I studied piano from elementary school through high school and violin in junior high school. Sadly, although I learned to read music, I discovered I don't have any musical talent. I'm a better music patron than I am a musician. I don't have a single favorite composer. I like Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Holst, John Williams, Gershwin, Bernstein, Bach, Stravinsky, and Paganini, among others. I have a favorite instrument, the cello. My second favorite instrument is the violin.
Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?
AG: I grew up reading mysteries, although the books I read would probably be classified as "traditional" instead of "cozy" these days since they weren't centered around hobbies, crafts, or occupations. They were "cozy" in the sense that any graphic violence occurred "off page" and none contained explicit sex. Romance, if there was any, was secondary to the puzzle. I'm all about the puzzle. I'm a "fix it" person. If I run into a problem I try to analyze it and solve it. That's the aspect of cozy/traditional mysteries that appeals to me. I devoured Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Rex Stout, and Carolyn Keene as a girl.
Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?
AG: Right now, I only write mysteries. In the future, who knows?
Kathy: Tell us about your series.
AG: Gethsemane Brown is an African American classical musician, disenchanted with her career as a performer, who lands in an Irish village where she gets a chance to reinvent herself. She moves into a haunted cottage and stumbles into crime solving when she meets a charming ghost. In the first book, Murder in G Major, she investigates the ghost's murder. In the second, Death in D Minor, she investigates the theft of a valuable antique and the murder of its owner to clear her brother-in-law of suspicion of the crimes.
Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?
AG: Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin are my favorite detectives. Rex Stout created the perfect blend of eccentric, Sherlock Holmes-like genius and action-oriented, tough guy detective in Wolfe and Goodwin. Plus Archie is deliciously snarky and he dressed well. I have a terrible crush on Archie.
Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?
AG: My inspirations were Agatha Christie, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and the desire to see an African American amateur sleuth.
Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?
AG: I've wanted to be a published author since the third grade when we made books as a class project and the school librarian put them on the library shelves.
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
AG: I don't know if I'd invite authors to a dinner party, except those I know personally. What if they turned out not to be anything like I imagined? Maybe Neil Gaiman, Garrison Keillor, Zadie Smith, and Walter Mosley. I'd sit quietly and listen to their conversation. Or I might invite M.R. James to hear one of his ghost stories firsthand. My first thought when I read this question was I'd rather invite fictional characters to dinner because you know what to expect. I came up with Jame Retief, Captain Janeway, and Miss Marple, then realized I read about/watch a lot of characters I wouldn't want to meet in real life--vampires, ghosts, poisoners, aliens, and moody detectives.
Kathy: What are you currently reading?
AG: I'm reading The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon.
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
AG: I enjoy needlework/sewing, especially embroidery. I used to quilt but I haven't in a while. I have a crate full of quilt tops waiting for me to turn them into quilts. I collect art and books. I love to travel. I do some genealogical research.
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
AG: My fridge and pantry are usually embarrassingly bare. I always have coffee, tea, sugar, and creamer on hand.
Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?
AG: Book 2, Death in D Minor, comes out in July 2017. I'm working on book 3, A Killing in C Sharp.
Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?
AG: I love classical music. I studied piano from elementary school through high school and violin in junior high school. Sadly, although I learned to read music, I discovered I don't have any musical talent. I'm a better music patron than I am a musician. I don't have a single favorite composer. I like Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Holst, John Williams, Gershwin, Bernstein, Bach, Stravinsky, and Paganini, among others. I have a favorite instrument, the cello. My second favorite instrument is the violin.
Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?
AG: I grew up reading mysteries, although the books I read would probably be classified as "traditional" instead of "cozy" these days since they weren't centered around hobbies, crafts, or occupations. They were "cozy" in the sense that any graphic violence occurred "off page" and none contained explicit sex. Romance, if there was any, was secondary to the puzzle. I'm all about the puzzle. I'm a "fix it" person. If I run into a problem I try to analyze it and solve it. That's the aspect of cozy/traditional mysteries that appeals to me. I devoured Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Rex Stout, and Carolyn Keene as a girl.
Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?
AG: Right now, I only write mysteries. In the future, who knows?
Kathy: Tell us about your series.
AG: Gethsemane Brown is an African American classical musician, disenchanted with her career as a performer, who lands in an Irish village where she gets a chance to reinvent herself. She moves into a haunted cottage and stumbles into crime solving when she meets a charming ghost. In the first book, Murder in G Major, she investigates the ghost's murder. In the second, Death in D Minor, she investigates the theft of a valuable antique and the murder of its owner to clear her brother-in-law of suspicion of the crimes.
Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?
AG: Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin are my favorite detectives. Rex Stout created the perfect blend of eccentric, Sherlock Holmes-like genius and action-oriented, tough guy detective in Wolfe and Goodwin. Plus Archie is deliciously snarky and he dressed well. I have a terrible crush on Archie.
Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?
AG: My inspirations were Agatha Christie, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and the desire to see an African American amateur sleuth.
Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?
AG: I've wanted to be a published author since the third grade when we made books as a class project and the school librarian put them on the library shelves.
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
AG: I don't know if I'd invite authors to a dinner party, except those I know personally. What if they turned out not to be anything like I imagined? Maybe Neil Gaiman, Garrison Keillor, Zadie Smith, and Walter Mosley. I'd sit quietly and listen to their conversation. Or I might invite M.R. James to hear one of his ghost stories firsthand. My first thought when I read this question was I'd rather invite fictional characters to dinner because you know what to expect. I came up with Jame Retief, Captain Janeway, and Miss Marple, then realized I read about/watch a lot of characters I wouldn't want to meet in real life--vampires, ghosts, poisoners, aliens, and moody detectives.
Kathy: What are you currently reading?
AG: I'm reading The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon.
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
AG: I enjoy needlework/sewing, especially embroidery. I used to quilt but I haven't in a while. I have a crate full of quilt tops waiting for me to turn them into quilts. I collect art and books. I love to travel. I do some genealogical research.
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
AG: My fridge and pantry are usually embarrassingly bare. I always have coffee, tea, sugar, and creamer on hand.
Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?
AG: Book 2, Death in D Minor, comes out in July 2017. I'm working on book 3, A Killing in C Sharp.
Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?
AG: The
best things about being an author are seeing my name on the cover of a
book, being selected as one of Suspense magazine's best debut novels of
2016, and being nominated for a Lefty Award and an Agatha Award for best
debut novel.
Kathy: Where can readers read more about you?
AG: I blog at www.missdemeanors.com, my website is alexiagordon.net, and my author Facebook page is www.facebook.com/AlexiaGordon.
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