INTERVIEW WITH NANCY J. COHEN
Why did you switch from nursing to
being a writer?
I’ve been writing ever since I can
remember. When I was younger, I did poems, short stories, and a
Shakespearean play. In 1975, I decided to write a novel and
bought a how-to book to help me learn the structure. Even though
I’ve tried to stop being a writer, I am unable to quit writing
stories. I take notes wherever I go, and characters keep talking
in my head. It’s an addiction.
What inspired the
Bad Hair Day mystery series?
I was in the hair salon getting a
perm, waiting for my timer to go off, and
I had nothing good to read. I glanced at the other customers who were
staring
into space waiting for their timers to go off. I thought, we need
something
gripping to read to kill time. Let’s kill off one of these
ladies!
Thus PERMED TO DEATH was born. In the story, hairstylist and salon
owner
Marla Shore is giving grumpy Mrs. Kravitz a perm when the old lady
croaks
in the shampoo chair. Marla has to prove her innocence to handsome
Detective
Dalton Vail.
How did you decide
Marla would be a hairstylist?
I can’t fix my own hair, so my heroine
has those skills. Marla is a
businesswoman as well as a talented professional who cares about her
customers.
A stylist has to be a good listener, so she’s a natural for a
sleuth.
She knows many people around town, and clients confide in her. The
beauty
parlor is a great background setting for a mystery series. People
are
constantly walking in, gossiping, and exchanging information. Plus,
it’s
fun to research, and I can write off my hair appointments on my taxes.
:)
You’ve gotten mail
from readers who think you are a hairdresser. How
do you make Marla seem so authentic?
I follow my stylist around to watch
her technique. In the salon, I’ll
take notes, ask a lot of questions, observe what people talk about and
how
the hairdressers work. I’ve subscribed to Modern Salon magazine
to
learn the lingo, visited a cosmetology school, and attended a beauty
show.
It’s really fun to research this series.
What other kinds
of research do you do?
Topics that interest me have become
subjects for my books: biomedical waste
disposal, animal testing of household products, shade-grown coffee,
tilapia
fish farming, melanoma detection, psychics, Turkish baths, Victorian
mourning jewelry,
and ghosts. Besides attending Citizens Police Academy, I’ve
interviewed
experts, surfed the Internet, gone on personal scouting trips to places
in
Florida where Marla chases suspects.
How do you keep
your series fresh?
Character relationships are always
evolving: Marla and Dalton, his daughter Brianna, Marla's mother Anita
and her boyfriend Roger, and so on. Plus
I am always excited to learn about a new topic, so I’ll usually explore
an
area of interest for each book
In your opinion,
what constitutes a good mystery?
Quirky Characters are the most
important feature, as well as compelling relationships
among the continuing cast. If you’re interested in the people, you’re
interested
in what happens to them. So the emotional hook is paramount to reader
satisfaction.
Setting in a traditional mystery is another important element. It’s
often
a character unto itself and lends distinction to a series. The mystery
element
should keep readers guessing whodunit until the end.
Do you use an
outline when plotting?
I’ll write an entire synopsis of the
story before beginning writing.
This synopsis may change as I’m writing. Once I had an unexpected
character
who popped up and provided an exciting plot twist. Another time,
I
changed the killer’s identity. So while the synopsis acts as a
guideline
for my writing, it isn’t defined in stone.
Do you work on
more than one book at a time?
I am usually thinking about the next
story and starting to gather research,
but generally, only one book stays in my head at a time.
Which book was
hardest to write? Which was the easiest?
They’re all hard to write. It takes
discipline to sit in the chair all day
when there are so many distractions. I set a goal of writing five pages
a
day or a chapter a week.
Do you follow any
rules when writing your books?
I have to remember to bring in the
friends that readers are expecting.
In other words, continuing characters. So I’ll have scenes with
Marla’s
neighbors, Goat and Moss. Moss writes limericks, and Goat dances
a
weird jig. Marla’s mom, Anita, nags her about dating Jewish
men.
Marla describes her progress to pals Tally or Nicole. Fans like
recipes,
too, so Marla may cook a dish during the course of the story. Dog
lovers
like Spooks. If you’re wondering, he’s modeled after my own
cream-colored
poodle. You can see photos on my web site: www.nancyjcohen.com
Are there any
taboos when writing a series?
Write each book as if you’re speaking
to a new reader. Fill in only the necessary
details from earlier volumes but put in enough for your fresh fans to
follow
the continuing plot threads. Each book should be a story complete in
itself.
How have readers
responded?
Getting fan mail is what makes writing
worthwhile. I appreciate every
reader letter that comes my way, and I save them in a big box. I
print
out e-mails and keep those in a notebook. Each letter gets a
personal
reply. It amazes me how many readers respond to the romance between
Marla
and Dalton Vail. Clearly, that’s a highlight of the series.
What is your
latest title?
PERISH BY PEDICURE. Marla takes a job
as assistant hairstylist to a platform artist at a beauty show.
The company director’s mysterious death causes unexpected chaos, but
that’s nothing compared to the turmoil at home. Her fiancé
Detective Dalton Vail’s former in-laws have come for a visit, putting
Marla’s temper on a short fuse just when she needs her wits to solve
another murder.
What’s next in the
series?
KILLER KNOTS is due out in December
2007. Hairstylist Marla Shore and her fiancé Dalton Vail
sail away on their first Caribbean cruise. Troubled waters lie
ahead when her in-laws show up for the ride. Things go downhill from
there when she learns a killer walks the decks, making Marla hope her
next shore excursion isn’t a trip to Davy Jones’s locker.