Nov 19 2016

A Composition in Murder by Larissa Reinhart – Interview + Giveaway

Posted by Brooke in Book Giveaway, Book Tour, Interview, Uncategorized / 3 Comments

A Composition in Murder

A Cherry Tucker Mystery #6

With a new art teaching gig at Halo House—Halo, Georgia’s posh independent living home—and Halo society scrutinizing her family and her love life, Cherry Tucker needs to stay out of trouble. However, her sleuthing skills are sought by Halo House’s most famous resident: Belvia Brakeman, the ninety-year-old, blind CEO and founder of Meemaw’s Tea. Belvia confides in Cherry that the family tea empire is in jeopardy. The CEO suspects her daughter, the COO, has been murdered and she might be next. Her offer is hard to refuse, but will have Cherry treading on Forks County Sheriff toes, namely her personal Deputy Heartache, Luke Harper.

Amid her town troubles, can Cherry put her reputation, romance, and life on the line for the final request of a sweet tea tycoon? While she juggles senior citizen shenanigans, small town politics, and corporate family scandals, Cherry finds the sweet tea business cutthroat in more ways than one.

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authorinterview
1) What does your writing area look like?

My desk is in my bedroom where I also have a faux Eames chair with a footstool. During the day I move between the two. I like to write in the chair and do other “work” at my desk. It helps me change work hats, too. When I sit at my desk, I can see my calendar and to-do lists and the mountain of receipts that need to be filed. Concentrating is not my forte. In the chair, I’ve just got my computer in my lap, a coffee at my elbow, and a nearby notebook for keeping track of characters and important clues.

2) What is your favorite thing about being an author?

Meeting (in person or virtually) readers. Hearing from readers encourages me to keep writing, but I also like meeting new people and hearing their stories. I’ve met so many lovely and interesting folks on my writing journey and added them to my bank of friends. I’m constantly inspired by them.

3) If you could write from anywhere in the world, where would you write from?

Right now I’m writing in Japan and I’ll tell you what, even though the internet makes writing and publishing possible for me, it’s not easy. Even though I love Japan and enjoy living here, I’d be happier writing at this desk and chair back in Georgia.

4) What was the inspiration for A Composition of Murder?

I grew up in a small town and in small towns, you get to know a lot of senior citizens. My neighbors were older, as well as many members of the church we attended, and my mother took us to visit shut-ins and the elderly in the local assisted living home. This is where I heard a lot of great stories. It made sense for Cherry Tucker, who lives in the small town of Halo, Georgia, to be involved with senior citizens. Plus having her teach drawing in a ritzy independent living home would mean all kinds of opportunities for her to get into trouble. I knew I could have a lot of fun with that setting.

5) Do you write every day, or as inspiration strikes?

Inspiration generally strikes at inopportune times, so I’ve got to write every day. If I stay off email and social media, I can generally get in a chapter or some good scenes each morning. I always have the next book waiting to be written, so I can’t dally.

6) What are you working on right now?

I’m writing the second book in the Maizie Albright Star Detective series, 16 Millimeters. 15 Minutes releases January 24th and I hope to have 16 Millimeters out later next year. Maizie’s an ex-teen and reality star who returns to her hometown in Georgia to escape life in Hollywood (also by judge’s orders) to become a detective. She’s trying to emulate her favorite childhood role, Julia Pinkerton, Teen Detective, but is also learning how to become her own person after spending a life under the thumb of managers, directors, and producers, particularly her stage-monster mother-manager.

Maizie Albright’s a lot of fun to write. And Wyatt Nash, the private detective she’s trying to get to mentor her, is particularly hunky. I was inspired by all the movie and television shows that were being filmed around my home in Peachtree City, Georgia (The Walking Dead, Drop Dead Diva, and numerous movies). With my recent experience on House Hunters International, I got some great background research, too.

When I finish 16 Millimeters, I’m going back to finish a romantic comedy I started, Biscuit Girl in Noodle Land. It’s set in Japan, which is fun for me, but the heroine is another Georgia girl. She’s visiting her brother in Japan and gets involved with a Japanese restauranteur. She’s a Southern food junkie and he loves barbecue. Although she plans to go back to Georgia, she brings her love of Southern cooking to Japan and might have to leave her heart there as well.

About the Author

A 2015 Georgia Author of the Year Best Mystery finalist, Larissa writes the Cherry Tucker Mystery series. The first in the series, Portrait of a Dead Guy, is a 2012 Daphne du Maurier finalist, 2012 The Emily finalist, and 2011 Dixie Kane Memorial winner. The sixth mystery, A Composition in Murder, releases November 15th. Her family and Cairn Terrier, Biscuit, now live in Nagoya, Japan, but they still call Georgia home.