East, West, Home’s . . . Where the Mystery Is

by Paula Gail Benson

On Saturday, September 13, 2025, the Capitol Crimes Chapter of Sisters in Crime in conjunction with the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southeastern Mystery Writers of America held its first bi-coastal Crime-A-Thon. What is that, you may ask? It’s a gathering of authors, six from each coast, grouped in panels to discuss what makes the settings and characters in their novels unique.

Baron R. Birtcher

Many thanks to Karen Phillips, President of Capitol Crimes, and its board for providing the registration and Zoom forum for this meeting. Special thanks to Richard Meredith and Chris Dreith for their organization and help in keeping track of audience questions. Another grateful shout out to Penny Manson, who moderated the setting panel of West Coast authors Baron R. Birtcher, Robin Burcell, Audrey Lee and East Coast authors Yasmin Angoe, Linda Lovely, and Lynn Chandler Willis.

I had the privilege of moderating the character panel with West Coasters Bruce Borges, Vinnie Hansen, and R. Franklin James and East Coasters Carla Damron, Sally Handley, and Dorothy McFalls. (I also must admit that I was delighted the participants and audience sang “Happy Birthday” to me. I’ll always remember being serenaded coast to coast!)

Bruce Borgos

Penny and I enjoyed taking a “Family Feud” approach with our panelists. We had terrific participation and an engaged audience, and we hope to repeat the coastal face-off again next year.

Some terrific authors were involved. If you haven’t been introduced to their work yet, I urge you to check them out. Here’s a little about each one.

WEST COAST PANELISTS

Baron R. Birtcher divides his time between Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. He is the author of the hardboiled Mike Travis series (Roadhouse Blues, Ruby Tuesday, Angels Fall, and Hard Latitudes), the Ty Dawson series (South California Purples, Fistful Of Rain, and Reckoning), as well as a stand-alone, Rain Dogs. www.facebook.com/BaronRBirtcher/

Robin Burcell

Bruce Borgos lives in Nevada, writes the Sheriff Porter Beck series, and also has written two stand-alone suspense novels. When in college, he took a course from the screenwriter of The China Syndrome, who complimented his storytelling ability by saying, “You can make a living at this.” Author Bruce Borgos

Robin Burcell, from San Francisco, California, is an FBI-trained forensic artist who has worked in law enforcement for nearly three decades as a police officer, detective and hostage negotiator. She has written thrillers, a mystery series featuring SFPD Homicide Inspector Kate Gillespie, and has co-authored books with Clive Cussler. www.robinburcell.com/

Vinnie Hansen

Vinnie Hansen lives in Santa Cruz, California, and writes the Carol Sabala, baker/sleuth mysteries. In addition, she has written two suspense novels published by Level Best Books and quite a few short stories (in four Guppy anthologies). Her second suspense novel, Crime Writer, has just been released. Vinnie Hansen – Author of ONE GUN and the Carol Sabala mystery series

R. Franklin James (also known as Rae) grew up in San Francisco and lives in Northern California. She writes three series about (1) Johanna Hudson, a genealogist; (2) Hollis Morgan, a white collar criminal who persevered to become a probate attorney; and (3) Remy Loh Bishop, who has been fired as a forensic technician for falsifying results. Author Rae James – Award-winning author of the Hollis Morgan and Remy Loh Bishop Mystery Series

R. Franklin James

Audrey Lee lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and received two degrees (including her master’s in education) from UC Berkeley. Her debut novel, The Mechanics of Memory, was nominated for the Edgar, the Anthony, the Silver Falchion, and the Lefty Award. Never to be Told will be released in May 2026. Author Audrey Lee

Audrey Lee

EAST COAST PANELISTS

Yasmin Angoe

Yasmin Angoe lives in Columbia, S.C. She grew up in Northern Virginia and is a first-generation Ghanaian American. She received the 2020 Eleanor Taylor Bland Award for Emerging Writers of Color from Sisters in Crime. Her Nena Knight series has been optioned for a TV/Film adaptation. Home - Yasmin Angoe, Author

Carla Damron lives in Columbia, S.C., writes the Caleb Knowles and Georgia Thayer series about social workers who become involved in criminal investigations, and also has written The Stone Necklace, women’s fiction that features interconnected stories (one of the last books published for the Pat Conroy imprint of the University of South Carolina Press). Carla Damron

Carla Damron

Sally Handley lives in Mauldin, S.C., and writes the Holly and Ivy series about sisters who garden and solve mysteries. She also has written a stand-alone novel, Stop the Threat, about school security. Home - sallyhandley.com

Linda Lovely lives by a lake in Upstate South Carolina. She has written the HOA mysteries, the Brie Hooker humorous mysteries, the Marley Clark traditional mysteries, a romantic suspense series called “Smart Women, Dumb Luck,” and a 1938 historical mystery. Author Linda Lovely | mystery and suspense author

Sally Handley

Dorothy McFalls (who also writes as Dorothy St. James) lives in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, has written romance, mystery, fantasy, and romantasy, and has three mystery series featuring (1) a White House gardener, (2) the proprietor of a Southern Chocolate Shop, and (3) a librarian operating a secret book room of real books. Cozy Mystery Books | Cozy Mystery Author Dorothy St. James

Lynn Chandler Willis lives in a little cottage on a minifarm in the heart of North Carolina. She has written true crime as well as the Ava Logan mysteries and a Death Doula novel. In 2013, she was the first woman in a decade to win the St. Martin’s Press/Private Eye Writers of America Best First P.I. Novel competition. https://lynnchandlerwillis.com/

Linda Lovely

All these fabulous authors made the event a great success. Many thanks to you all!

The Capitol Crimes Chapter has now posted the video on YouTube. If you would like to watch, here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4UCnoQara8&feature=youtu.be

What do you think? Which coast produces the best mystery protagonists and villains?

Dorothy McFalls/Dorothy St. James

Lynn Chandler Willis

Linda Lovely Interview by E. B. Davis

Bones To Pick Jacket Copy

Living on a farm with four hundred goats and a cantankerous carnivore isn’t among vegan chef Brie Hooker’s list of lifetime ambitions. But she can’t walk away from her Aunt Eva, who needs help operating her dairy.

Once she calls her aunt’s goat farm home, grisly discoveries offer ample inducements for Brie to employ her entire vocabulary of cheese-and-meat curses. The troubles begin when the farm’s pot-bellied pig unearths the skull of Eva’s husband, who disappeared years back. The sheriff, kin to the deceased, sets out to pin the murder on Eva. He doesn’t reckon on Brie’s resolve to prove her aunt’s innocence. Death threats, ruinous pedicures, psychic shenanigans, and biker bar fisticuffs won’t stop Brie from unmasking the killer, even when romantic befuddlement throws her a curve.

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Persistence pays off—on October 24 Linda Lovely’s new Brie Hooker series will debut with Bones To Pick, published by Henery Press. Brie Hooker finds much irony in her life. After her fiancé betrays her, she finds two men are interested in her. Although she is a vegan and a vegan chef, her current work involves dairy—in the form of caretaking goats and chickens—neither of which in any form fits her culinary choices. Her dream come true happens only at the cost of a beloved aunt dying. So when another aunt lands on the police murder suspect list, Brie must solve the case to prevent another irony from occurring.

There was a lot that interested me in Bone To Pick. Linda’s main and secondary characters are well developed. Brie’s family characters are especially fun. I’ve always enjoyed Linda Lovely’s writing. Four years ago, I interviewed her about a previous mystery series she wrote for a different publisher. Please welcome Linda Lovely back to WWK.                                                                                   E. B. Davis

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Brie grew up in Iowa, but her family migrated to South Carolina. How did this happen?

Brie’s Aunt Eva married a South Carolinian. After he died, Eva’s twin, Lilly, moved in with Eva to help her with the farm. Much later, when Clemson University offered Brie’s dad a job as head of its horticultural department, he accepted. Being near his twin sisters provided added incentive. Brie doesn’t arrive in South Carolina until Lilly dies and Aunt Eva needs her help.

The Udderly Kidding Dairy is located in South Carolina’s Ardon County. Is Ardon County real? Is it located near Clemson?

Ardon County is fictitious. But I’ve squeezed it into actual Upstate South Carolina geography. It’s located near both Clemson and Greenville.

Even though Brie is a vegan, she admits to having hunger for barbeque. Why is she a vegan? 

Brie believes it’s a healthier diet and better for the planet’s resources, but she’s not a crusader. She sees it as a personal lifestyle choice. (The same attitude as my family doctor.)

The Udderly Kidding Dairy produces goat cheese and chicken eggs for customers. Why is Brie working there when she is actually a vegan chef?

She arrives to temporarily help Aunt Eva run the farm. When her aunt becomes a murder suspect, she stays to prove her aunt’s innocence.

Aunt Eva seems a hardy soul. She even has a lover in her mule’s farrier, Billy Jackson. How could she have been a victim of spousal abuse by her long gone husband, Jed Watson?

Eva married at age nineteen. She was isolated from her family and humiliated that she’d made a terrible mistake. She made the decision to leave Jed just before he disappeared. Eva is now in her early sixties. She’s a different person than the abused teenager, and she’s vowed never to be anyone’s victim again.

Although Aunt Eva exaggerates a bit about Brie’s talents to two possible suitors, Aunt Eva also is a bit passive-aggressive in the form of Post-It notes to Brie. “…The choline in eggs may enhance brain development and memory—as a vegan you probably forgot.” Why does Aunt Eva do that and what started it?

Brie is accustomed to Eva’s jibes. Eva and her twin Lilly always sparred good-naturedly with each other, and it’s Eva’s way of showing Brie she accepts her as an equal and loves her as much as she did Lilly.

Brie’s father is a horticulture professor at Clemson University, but he is also an unpublished mystery writer and a member of Sisters in Crime. How has his mystery pursuit affected Brie especially during car rides?

Brie’s dad always shared his love of mysteries with his daughter, who is also an avid reader. When the two go on car rides, one of his games is to spot places where a villain might try to hide a body. He also tells her about his experiences each year when he attends the Writers’ Police Academy.

A friend from childhood who visits the farm, Mollye Camp, gets Brie into a lot of trouble. Why does Brie go along with Mollye’s attempts to investigate? Does Mollye know the meaning of the word “inconspicuous?”

Inconspicuous isn’t in Mollye’s vocabulary. Mollye’s a superb salesperson for her ideas, and Brie always thinks she’s figured out a way to provide a safety net.

Brie’s family members tell each other what they think the others want to hear, but that doesn’t match what they think or feel. Are they dishonest or pacifying each other?

They love each other and know exactly what objections another might raise if they were totally honest about their plans for a course of action. It’s not so much dishonesty as it is delaying disclosure to avoid arguments about things they feel they must do.

How many flavors of moonshine does Paint sell? Is peach Brie’s favorite?

Yes, peach is Brie’s favorite. Other flavors are Apple Pie, Blackberry, Strawberry, and White Lightning.

As suitors of Brie, how do best friends—moonshining Paint and veterinarian Andy Green—retain their friendship while competing?

They’ve been best friends since childhood and have been friendly competitors many times in the past. Their friendship is too strong to ever wish the other one ill.

There is Cashew, Brie’s Teacup Morkie, Bai, Eve’s Border Collie, Brenda, a spoiled pet goat, Tammy, the Vietnamese Potbellied pig, five Pyrenees, guardian dogs, 400 goats, and a lot of chickens. Do they single-handedly keep Andy in business? Is it a wonder they need Paint’s moonshine?

Yep, there are a lot of animals, and I needed to do quite a bit of research into the behaviors of my animal cast. My memories of the weeks I lived on my cousins’ farm when I was about eight or nine didn’t cut it. Fortunately, one of my critique partners has two horses and a mule, and loves to share stories. I’ve also enjoyed spending quality time at Split Creek Farm, a nearby Grade A Dairy. I even joined in a “goat yoga” class there.

Do you have pets, Linda?

I had a dog, Brownie, and a parakeet when I was a kid. But I’ve developed allergies to pet dander and saliva—both cats and dogs—so no pets. While I’m not allergic to goats, I’m pretty sure our home owners’ association would fine us if we brought home a four-legged kid. Our lot is wooded, though, so at least I get to enjoy visits from a variety of birds. I’m less happy when a beaver visits and eats my roses.

How did the contract with Henery come about?

I’d spent time with several Henery authors at various conferences and liked what they had to say about their publisher. When I described the premise for my Brie Hooker Mystery series, they thought it was a fit and encouraged me to query.

Linda Lovely Interview

 

Linda Lovely set her first Marley Clark series, Dear Killer, on an island near Beaufort, S.C. Of course, the beach setting attracted me, and I admired her main character, who served as a security officer on the island after retiring as a military intelligence officer. Her third book in this series, With Neighbors Like These, will be released soon. In addition to this series, Linda also writes one-off romantic/suspense thrillers. Her first, Final Accounting, left me breathless. Please welcome Linda to WWK.                                                                            E. B. Davis

1. Could you give our readers a synopsis of your Marley Clark series?

Marley, a 52-year-old widow, is retired military, and she’s working security to keep mind and body busy. Her security job and skills give her plenty of opportunities/reasons for becoming involved in solving murders and other mysteries. She’s recently come to realize her late husband would not want her to remain a loveless, lonely widow, but returning to a world of courtships and relationship challenges often leaves her befuddled. Marley is smart, fit, and sexy. She has a keen sense of humor and some interesting (and funny) friends.

2. When will With Neighbors Like These be released? Can you give us the jacket paragraph?

I’m aiming for late 2013, though recent distractions (good ones) have caused a slight delay. For example, I just signed contract with a narrator to produce a Dear Killer audio book and need to provide notes about the “voices” I hear in my head when my characters speak.

In With Neighbors Like These, Marley’s best friend (Janie) has started a business that offers management services, including security, to homeowner associations (HOAs) throughout the seaside county. When squabbles among homeowners turn vicious, Janie turns to Marley for help. Then someone’s murdered. And another murder quickly follows. Both death scenes are staged to humiliate the deceased. Since the murders aren’t confined to a single HOA, it’s a stretch to believe testy neighbors are the villains. Yet tempers are boiling. Could the second murder be a copycat crime? Marley suspects a different murder motive is in play. Braden, Marley’s love interest in DEAR KILLER, is back in the Lowcountry, too!    

3. Your main characters aren’t cozy. Marley has a tough edge. She swears. She owns weapons and knows how to use them. Is this due to her military training or would Marley still possess these attributes without her military experience?

I wanted a series heroine who would logically have the skills and experience (and a job) that would allow her to become involved in investigating and solving crimes. I chose a military background for Marley because my best friend since kindergarten is a retired military intelligence officer and was kind enough to share a lot of her experiences with me. As far as the swearing goes, Marley mostly uses “milder” swear words that my own mother might have used if she dropped a hammer on her toe or found a dead body. I can tell you if I stumbled over a corpse, I would utter something stronger than “oh my goodness.” I hope my language is realistic without being unnecessarily vulgar.

4. Water is a common theme in your work. Does it have a special significance for you?

Yes, I LOVE the water. I grew up next to the Mississippi River, spent childhood and teen summers in Spirit Lake, Iowa, and have either lived near or beside water most of my adult life. I’m an avid swimmer and kayaker. It’s only natural that my characters share my love for the ocean and lakes.

5. Is Dear Island, the setting for the Marley Clark series, real or your creation?

Dear Island is a composite island with features lifted from a variety of communities. I lived in the Beaufort area for twelve years. Engaged in tourism-related public relations work, I visited many of the South Carolina Lowcountry’s delightful communities, historic sites, and cultural attractions.

6. Your secondary characters at times are comical, such as the big shot homeowner association

president, who takes himself too seriously or tragic, such as the young brothers who are loose on the island with no parental supervision. Have you lived in communities like the one you describe on Dear Island?

Like Dear Island, my characters are composites. I steal traits from the people (good and/or detestable) I’ve encountered over the years, mixing and matching characteristics as needed. I’ve killed off (on the page!) a number of people who’ve seriously annoyed me. They would never recognize themselves, however. I’ve changed their ages, appearance, professions, and, on occasion, even their gender. What I’ve kept is their core character. In almost any neighborhood, there’s at least one annoying know-it-all, who really ought to find another hobby/interest and leave his/her neighbors in peace.  

7. Do you think that being a finalist in the Golden Heart and Daphne Du Maurier contests helped you become published?

Not directly. But entering contests helped me improve my craft. Feedback from judges helped me spot problems in my manuscript I hadn’t noticed. Also serving as a judge has made me more aware of potential flaws in my own manuscript related to pacing and dialogue. Sometimes less really is more.

8. Your publishers include, MuseItUp Publishing, L&L Dreamspell, and Harlequin Worldwide Mystery. How did you find your publishers or they find you?

I met an editor for L&L Dreamspell at a conference, and she suggested I submit to them (L&L is no longer in business). A critique partner who’d published with MuseItUp suggested I submit to that house. I met a Harlequin editor at another conference who suggested my Marley Clark series might suit the Worldwide Mystery line. L&L submitted works by several of its authors to Worldwide Mystery.

9. Why do you write a mystery series and one-off suspense thrillers? Do they both fulfill a function in your writing?

I’m sure I’d be wiser to concentrate in one genre and write all of my books with a cohesive readership in mind. But I have ideas for stories I really want to explore/write that don’t fit my Marley Clark series and location. For example, I just finished LIES, a romantic suspense manuscript set in Iowa in 1938. It’s inspired in part by stories my mother told me about how hard it was for working women in the Depression. I’ve put that book on a shelf to “age” for a couple of months before I return for a final critical edit. FINAL ACCOUNTING was inspired by a troubled young lady I met in college and a visit to Jamaica when my sister and brother-in-law lived there. The idea for MISDIRECTION, a completed manuscript now looking for a home, came from a visit by a director of security for a nearby university to our Upstate SC Chapter of Sisters in Crime.

10. Tell us about your next one-off suspense thriller?

I’m not sure which of the thrillers I just mentioned will be published first. I’m hoping LIES will be published soon. I had such fun doing the historical research on my hometown of Keokuk, Iowa.

Bonus: Which do you prefer, beach or lake?

I love the beach for walking the shoreline. I love the lake for swimming and kayaking. I can stare at the beauty of either one for hours (but then I’d never finish a manuscript).