NAME THAT SHOP!

by Korina Moss

I’m in the final stages of writing the fourth book in my Cheese Shop Mystery series. Each book continues with the core cast of characters and introduces new ones, most of whom then become regular characters in the series (if they’re not the culprit or the victim, of course). These characters, original and new, live and work in my fictional town of Yarrow Glen. When I created my small Sonoma Valley town, I made a drawing of what it looked like and the shops and businesses it would encompass. The town center is only a few square blocks with wide brick-lined sidewalks dotted with crepe myrtle trees, a large park, and a sole traffic light.

This photo of Paso Robles, CA comes close to
how I envision part of downtown Yarrow Glen 

Main Street includes the major buildings: town hall, the library, post office, church, and the new security complex (the police and fire stations). There’s also Ron’s Service Station where you can pick up an old-fashioned curvy glass bottle of Coca-Cola for a dollar while getting your car fueled, washed, and serviced. The turn-of-the-century Inn at Yarrow Glen is where visitors stay. My protagonist Willa can usually find the latest newcomer she wants to question in the attached pub, The Cellar. The former wine cellar is also where the locals regularly gather, including Willa and her friends. It’s only a few buildings down from Apricot Grille, the only fancy restaurant in town. However, when Willa’s not making one of her cheese-filled dishes, she and her friends prefer to grab a quick bite while on a case at the Let’s Talk Taco truck, which is parked across from the Glen Gazette newspaper building.  

The Inn at Yarrow Glen was inspired by the
Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake, CA. 

The last block of Pleasant Avenue is where Willa’s cheese shop, Curds & Whey, is located. The street is a hodgepodge of mostly older flat-roofed buildings, which were renovated into shops and cafés with second-story cozy apartments where the shop owners reside. Willa lives above Curds & Whey across the street from perpetual flirt, Roman, owner of the Golden Glen Meadery. Her best friend Baz, the handyman, lives next door above Carl’s Hardware. Lou’s Market and Read More Bookstore complete her side of the street. At the end of the block is Rise and Shine Bakery where Willa gets her daily fresh breads for customer cheese sampling.

As you might be able to tell from that description, not every business in the town center is mentioned. This was done purposely, as I wanted to leave myself the creative freedom to add certain shops for future storylines. One of these new businesses is a bicycle shop and it needs a name. I decided to do something different and involve cozy mystery readers in the creative process. I thought it would be fun to allow you the opportunity to name the shop. From your suggestions, I will choose the bicycle shop name I like best and use it in my cheese shop mysteries series. The person whose name I choose will receive a signed copy of Book 4 when it releases and will be credited in the acknowledgements. 

If you’d like to suggest a fictional bicycle shop name for consideration in my book, go to my Facebook author page here and find the pinned post with the photo of this bicycle. 

Leave your suggestion in the comments section under the post. Be sure to hit the follow button on my page so you’ll be notified if your bicycle shop name was chosen. You can suggest as many names as you like, as this is not a random drawing. If more than one person has suggested the same name, the person who commented first will be credited. If you don’t have social media, you can email me at korinamossauthor@gmail.com. I’m taking bicycle shop name suggestions through this Wednesday, January 12th. Have fun and good luck! 

If you'd like to learn more about my Cheese Shop Mystery series, please visit my website at korinamossauthor.com