Why do you write Murder Mysteries? A guest post by Marilyn Meredith

Today I'm hosting fellow Oak Tree Press author, Marilyn Meredith, author of the Rocky Bluff P.D. and the Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series. She is set to release the 15th book in her Deputy Tempe Crabtree series, "Seldom Traveled", and she graciously slowed down long enough to sit on the Back Deck and talk about why she writes murder mysteries and to tell you about a contest she is sponsoring for readers who comment on her posts:

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My host, Amy, posed this question as it’s one she gets asked a lot. I haven’t been asked that much, but I think the difference is, Amy is young and appears to be sweet. (And she is.) I’m old, and probably appear a bit more on the grumpy side, the type of person who might like dipping into the darker side of life.

Since that’s not really the right answer, I’ll give you my motivation for writing murder mysteries.

Our world today is full of evil—people are killing one another for all sorts of reasons. Some of the bad guys get caught and are killed or punished, but some get away with what they’ve done.

When I’m writing a murder mystery I know from the start that my villain will be caught, no if, ands, or buts! This is one place I know justice will be done, because I’m in control.

Another reason I write murder mysteries is I like the puzzle. Yes, it’s a puzzle for me too because though I think I know who the murderer is from the beginning, sometimes as I’m writing, I know I’ve chosen wrong. When that happens, it means a bit of rewriting to make sure it will all make sense to the reader.

I can understand why people might ask the above question—it might have a hidden meaning, like why don’t you write sweet romances instead? (Or whatever reading genre they prefer.) When you think about it, that question is better than someone asking you where the restroom is, something that happens a lot in a book store signing.

No matter what anyone might think, I’ll continue to write (and read) murder mysteries until I’m no longer able and I hope that’s a long, long time from now.

Marilyn

Seldom Traveled Blurb:

The tranquility of the mountain community of Bear Creek is disrupted by a runaway fugitive, a vicious murderer, and a raging forest fire. Deputy Tempe Crabtree is threatened by all three.

Marilyn Meredith’s Bio:

Marilyn has had so many books published, she’s lost track of the count, but it’s getting near 40. She lives in a community similar to the fictional mountain town of Bear Creek, the big difference being that Bear Creek is a thousand feet higher in the mountains. She is a member of Mystery Writers of American, three chapters of Sisters in Crime, and is a board member of Public Safety Writers of America.

http://fictionforyou.com

http://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com

New contest:

Winners will be randomly picked from those leaving the most comments on the blog posts. Each winner can choose one of the earlier books in the series as either a print book or e-book.

You can find me here tomorrow:

http://cncbooks.blog/