by Korina Moss
September always puts me in the mood for a fair. I’ve been going to the Eastern States Exposition, better known as The Big E, in Massachusetts for 20 years. It’s an agricultural fair and then some, celebrating all things New England and takes place for 17 days in mid-September.
I love the vibe of a fair: Watching happy people carrying large stuffed animal prizes on their shoulders, eating anything on a stick, and buying items that seem like “must buys” in the moment; the rhythm of the crowd noise punctuated by screams of teenagers on thrill rides and the bells and whistles of midway games; the quieter stalls of farm animals, giant pumpkins, and ribbon-winning pies, produce, and quilts; and the comingling aromas of cotton candy, kettle corn, smoked meats, and fried foods. Together, they create the cozy comforts of a fair—a perfect locale for a cozy mystery.
Thus, it’s no surprise that I took a lot of inspiration from my love of the fair for my fifth Cheese Shop Mystery, Fondue or Die, which takes place at the Dairy Days festival. I pulled some of the dairy aspects of The Big E and incorporated them into my festival— the butter sculpture and the cows, goats, and sheep, as well as foods like milkshakes, poutine (fries topped with cheese curds and gravy), and mac and cheese in a bread cone. The Big E’s dairy judging turned into a cow parade for my fictional festival, and I added games like cow chip bingo and a musical udders contest (fake udders, of course). The festival’s Miss Dairy pageant was also my own idea. I think the chaos and slightly farcical nature of an outdated competition like this with, nonetheless, high stakes, make for a good mystery setting.
 |
| Butter sculpture in progress |
The best part of writing Fondue or Die was getting to spend so much time in my imagination at the fair. The worst part was no access to fair foods. My imagination apparently cannot adequately satisfy my craving for fried Oreos.
What’s your favorite part of the fair? Give a shout-out to your favorite fair or festival.
KORINA MOSS is the author of the Cheese Shop Mystery series set in the Sonoma Valley, including the Agatha Award winner for Best First Novel, Cheddar Off Dead and the Agatha Award finalist for Best Contemporary Novel, Case of the Bleus. Her books have been featured in USA Today, PARADE Magazine, Woman’s World, AARP, and Fresh Fiction. Her 5th book, Fondue or Die, releases on October 22nd. To learn more and preorder, visit her website korinamossauthor.com.
My favorite part of fairs was always playing the games with a chance of winning something (big!).
ReplyDeleteI won a goldfish once when I was a kid.
DeleteI haven't been to a fair in years. I always enjoyed the Ferris wheel when I went.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid of heights, so I don't know why I always went on the ferris wheel but I was always a little bit scared when I did.
DeleteMy solution to missing fair food is making my own corn dogs and funnel cakes.
ReplyDeleteGood solution!
DeleteI've never been to any of the state or big regional fairs. When I was in high school, I joined my father and played in a fireman's band during the summer. The volunteer departments in the area all had fairs as fund raisers. Each week we marched in the parade to kickoff the fair. And (the thrill) got to ride the fire truck back to where we had parked the car after the parade and a few games of chance.
ReplyDeleteI got to sit in a firetruck once when my son was a toddler. It was a thrill for me as an adult. Why is that?? LOL.
DeleteThere are several fairs in MA. I went to the ‘ big E’ once, I enjoyed it but have never gone back because it’s just a little too far away
ReplyDeleteA number of years ago I went to the Topsfield MA fair which is held in the beginning of Oct.
The highlight for me was seeing the Clydesdale horses.When you see pictures of them, you don’t get a sense of their true size.
I knew they were big but I didn’t realize how enormous they were until they walked by me.
That's so true about the Clydesdale horses. And every year, their size still takes me by surprise.
DeleteWhen we lived in Dallas, we weren't far from the Texas State Fair, which was a huge production. Lots of fun, but only every few years. It took that long to recover. (School kids actually got a day off each year and free fair tickets!)
ReplyDeleteHow fun! I lived in Texas for several years but never went to the state fair. (We lived near Austin.)
DeleteBrings back lots of memories since fairs are a staple of the Midwest.
ReplyDeleteIt's still on my bucket list to go to one of the midwest fairs
Delete