Media Kit

PnC: You truly do enjoy cooking. Do you use recipes, or are you the intrepid type of chef who “wings it” with whatever ingredients you might have on hand?
CA: Oh, I guess I tend to wing it.  Just can’t resist.  If I’m trying something brand new and complicated, something I haven’t done before, I keep the recipe at hand, but I rarely get all the way through without changing amounts or substituting ingredients.  I’ve really had a lot of fun experimenting with ingredients for different soups for the Soup Lover’s Mystery series.  Some have “sort of” worked, but some have turned out to be really great inventions.  This practice doesn’t work so well with baking though.  If the ingredients aren’t just right, the cake or dough won’t turn out.  I should mention I’m a terrible baker.  I once attempted bread.  When I pulled the hot loaf out of the oven and dropped it on a plate, the plate broke.  So I stay far away from baking now.

PnC: What’s the first question fans meeting you for the first time ask?
CA: Several people have asked which book in the series is my favorite.  I’m always stumped. How can I possibly answer that?  That’s like asking which child do you love more.  I always say I love them all for different reasons.
Another common question is “How do you come up with your ideas?”  Most of mine come from the “what if” category.  That, and surfing the web for odd stories.  Life truly is stranger than fiction.  For example, in A Broth of Betrayal, I wondered what would happen if a crime had been committed years before, but was never recognized as such.  Would that crime fester and come back to life many years later?  When I was working out a plot for A Roux of Revenge, I stumbled across a web story about the Canada Border Patrol capturing a large group of Romanian gypsies trying to cross into the U.S.  That certainly piqued my curiosity.  I realized there was no reason the plots in Snowflake had to stop at the borders of Vermont.
Once at a conference I was asked how I chose my murder weapons.  At the time, only the first book, A Spoonful of Murder, had been released and I was stuck.  I couldn’t talk about that murder weapon.  It would have been a dead giveaway because the weapon was hiding in plain sight and was clearly associated with one character.  I was able to say that I was looking into the possibility of farm equipment, which got a big laugh.  But it was true (A Roux of Revenge).  I’m not a farm girl by any stretch, but I watched a lot of videos about corn threshers and knew I wanted to find a way to use that deadly machinery in one of the books.  

PnC: Do you feel you compete with other food-centric cozy writers, or do you believe more authors/books only means a bigger fan base for everyone? 
CA: I’ve never felt any sense of competition in that regard.  We all contribute to the genre and I admire my fellow cozy writers (and all writers of various genres) a great deal, especially when they’re turning out fresh, wonderful stories after fifteen or more books.  I stand in awe.  The only really important thing is to tell the best story you can and entertain your readers.  

PnC: You seem to average about one book per year. Is this your personal choice, or does your publisher encourage this schedule?
CA: I’d like to think I’m so disciplined I would produce one book a year!  At least I’m trying.  In my case, my contract required that I submit each book every eight months.  Needless to say, I spent every spare minute writing!  But having taken on that discipline, I do want to keep it up and always be working on something, either the next book in a series or a new project.  

PnC: Speaking of publishing, what do you think of the current trend toward “self-publishing”? Something you’d ever consider?
I was very blessed that Penguin Random House (Berkley Prime Crime) wanted to publish my books.  It was an absolutely invaluable experience and a very rewarding one as well.  But I think if I had a manuscript that I felt deserved the light of day and hadn’t found a home I would certainly consider self-publishing.  Going that route does involve a bigger investment of time and money, but the stigma is quickly evaporating.  I have friends who have self-published, won awards and even currently have projects in production for films. So, short answer:  yes!

PnC: Do you enjoy reading non-cozy mysteries, suspense/thrillers or true crime? If so, who are some of your favorite authors?
CA: Absolutely!  I am totally in love with Scandinavian noir and thrillers.  I think I’m enjoying writers from across the pond the most right now.  I’m tempted to take an axe to my keyboard when I read Tana French or Ann Cleeves or Henning Mankell or Mo Hayder or Ian Rankin — and so many others.  One of my favorite things to do is to browse through bookstores and look for writers I’ve never heard of. I’ve discovered some of my favorite books that way.

PnC: Do you have any plans to break out of the cozy genre for a future project – or is this your “home”?
CA: I’ve had an absolutely wonderful time writing the Soup Lover’s Mystery series, and I will always feel proud of those books, but I don’t see myself staying exclusively in that genre. There are subjects I’d like to tackle that would be no-nos for that type of book – child abductions, for example, or human trafficking which is a tremendous problem worldwide and in the U.S. as well.
The upcoming Zodiac Mysteries have a modern, urban setting, so perhaps some might not consider them strictly cozy but I am looking forward to readers’ comments.  I hope they’ll take Julia into their hearts, as they have Lucky Jamieson of Snowflake, Vermont.

PnC: What do you consider your greatest literary honor to date? What award/recognition would you most love to earn?
CA: Being published.  Seriously!  That alone is huge!!!  And to be really honest, as wonderful as it must be to win an award – an Edgar, an Agatha, a Thriller Award — or even to be nominated, and receive that acknowledgement from your peers, I deliberately choose not to think about it. When a writer (or any creative person) begins to focus on awards or results, it can become antithetical to the creative process.  I just want to write the books I love, and hope readers love them too.  

PnC: A Clue in the Stew is set for April 2016 release. Is it written and off to the publisher, or are you still writing it?
CA: A Clue in the Stew was actually finished several months ago, the copy edits are completed and it’s in the works.  I even have the cover.  And I was thrilled to see that it’s already up on Amazon.  Thank you Berkley Prime Crime!  And I’m so looking forward to its release next spring. In Clue, a famous mystery writer who has a dark history with one of the villagers, comes to town.  Soon the murders mimic the crimes in her popular book.  Is this a case of a copycat killer?  Or is someone targeting the popular author?  

PnC: What specific author(s) sparked your interest in writing cozies – or was this something that bloomed organically, from within yourself?
CA: I’ve always devoured mysteries and thrillers of all sorts.  Years ago, I spent a very long snowbound winter in Boston, and a thoughtful aunt gave me a huge box of Agatha Christies.  It saved my sanity through all the blizzards.  I lived with Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot for months.  I’d be remiss not to mention the fabulous Dorothy Sayers, of course, and I think Sue Grafton inspired me quite a bit.  Kinsey is a PI, not an amateur sleuth, but I always felt I was embarking on an exciting journey with an old friend every time I opened one of her books.  I had the pleasure of actually meeting her at the California Crime Writers Conference a couple of years ago. She’s a delightful and charming woman and I was a total gushing fan!  

PnC: Why are you so well-suited to this genre?
CA: Am I?  I’m not sure.  I guess I am.  I’ve managed to write several books and people seem to like them.  But I think a story is a story and each one has its very own organic life and form. The story dictates the tone and the genre.  I prefer to think of it that way, rather than try to fit an idea into a preconceived box.  

PnC: Do you enjoy hearing from fans? Do you have time to respond to any of their letters and emails?
CA: I love hearing from readers!  And I always respond.  It’s one of my favorite things about being an author.  I’ve always been very shy about writing to my favorite authors, so I’m thrilled when someone takes the time to tell me they really enjoyed one of my books. After all, that’s really why we do this!  Perhaps that’s the best reward there is.  

PnC: Do you always know what your next book will be, and if so, how many books are currently banging around in your brain, wanting to be written?
CA: There’s one I’ve made a serious dent in, but have had to set it to the side, to work on the astrology series that’s coming out next year.  At least for the time being.  I started with the idea of two women, in the same profession, who dislike each other intensely but are forced by circumstances to come together.  It began as a somewhat humorous idea, but it’s now turning into something else.  A homicide detective has inserted himself into the story and he has become the most interesting character to me.  This is a unique experience because I can usually visualize or “feel” the final book, but it’s morphing into something totally different than I had at first anticipated, with three separate points of view.
I have two other projects I also want to find time to work on.  These ideas both involve female protagonists, one is somewhat historical and the other has two very unique protagonists in a modern setting.  If only there were more hours in the day!  

PnC: Is there anything else you’d like Prose ‘n Cons readers to know about you?
CA: I really do love to hear from readers and/or writers, so feel free to contact me any time at conniearchermysteries@gmail.com or Facebook.com/ConnieArcherMysteries or Twitter @SnowflakeVT. And you can catch me on the 15th of every month at Killer Characters too.

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