BooksChatter: ℚ A Taste For Mystery

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with author K.D. Rose to talk about A Taste For Mystery (18 July 2015, K.D. Rose, 180 pages), which contains two Mystery Detective Romance novellas.

K.D. describes herself on her blog as a "Published Poet & Author. Reader. Analyst. Futurist. Belle of the Pithy, Acerbic Ball.", as well as having an eclectic mind and being a geek.

Author Q&A | Trailer | Synopsis | Teaser | Other Works By The Author | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

What was the inspiration for A Taste For Mystery, your latest book?

"I actually have several books out at once right now that are my "latest book" but A Taste for Mystery was written because I loved mystery and suspense novels growing up. Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine all intrigued me. My novel also has some romance in it as well."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"I don't tend to put myself into my characters, I like to develop them and they really are their own person with their own quirks. As a pantser writer, I especially like it when the characters organically develop tendencies, secrets and thought processes while writing."

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for A Taste For Mystery - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"This cover is pure me. I have many covers with people and specifically chosen visions. I wanted this one to be more abstract. I didn't want the typical gumshoe detective scenario and I didn't want a romantic cover because the book is mainly mystery so I chose a smoky, mysterious cover that was very simplistic. I love to go through images on stock photo sites though for use on covers. I've found some great artists that way too. This was just a change of pace for me."

Since our interview K.D. decided to change the cover to the one used in our spotlight feature for A Taste Of Mystery, which is also pictured just above - the same principles do seem to apply.

Why should we read A Taste For Mystery and what sets it apart from the rest?

"Well first, the book consists of two novellas. The novellas are sequential in time though and overlap characters so there's a thread going through the whole book even though each story is complete within itself. I could definitely continue to write more with the main two characters.

I think the interplay between the main two characters, whether they are together or apart is a key draw. The second novella especially gets complex with the mystery portion but you can tell when the two main characters of the book get together it stands out. Some people just have chemistry! Each one is very human too and the reader sees behind the persona they choose to show others. "

Can you tell us something quirky about A Taste For Mystery, its story and characters?

"Ha. I wrote another book, a Young Adult/New Adult book called Erasing: Shadows where I named most of the characters after relatives, as a tribute to them and a fun thing to do. Not the character's personalities or anything, just the names. That was the only book where I did that.

In this book I wrote a character I didn't expect to write and he became one of the most endearing ones. He's in the second novella and starts off as an inscrutable, difficult person to figure out, but once you do, as a reader you really love him. Writing him was particularly fun, especially his interactions with others. It was a way to take eccentricity to the extreme without getting into disorders or anything, although basically I would say he is an Asperger's person who managed to work his way up in the business world. Readers really like his character. "

Who would you recommend A Taste For Mystery to and what should readers be aware of (any warnings or disclaimers)?

"No warnings. This book has romance in it but is not graphic. The romances are at times very sweet and other times very human. I'd recommend the book to anyone who likes mysteries, especially mixed with a bit of romance. There's a lot of action too."

If you could / wished to turn A Taste For Mystery a into a movie, who would be your dream team?

"I think Michael Bay directs some of the most action filled movies today so he would be great to bring out the action elements and really make them exciting visually.

Actors, wow, there is a whole cast when you take in both novellas, so if I just stick with the two main characters I think I would say hmm, you know Jeremy Renner might make a good Jack Heart. Jack is a bit older than Carolyn Woods and a little grizzled and Jeremy could play that, plus he could do the romance as well as comic and tender scenes I think. Jennifer Lawrence or Emma Stone would make perfect Carolyn Woods."

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I've been exploring different genres, though I am about to narrow down to about three. So far I've written what is now called an Anthology, although it's a mix of things; this Mystery; a Young Adult/New Adult novel that's the beginning of a series; several short stories that all have paranormal elements to them (put together in my book called Anger's Children), a Humor Book that is also one of my new releases, called The Brevity of Twit, and a number of poetry books. I also write articles now and then on trends and publish poetry separately by submitting to magazines."

What is your writing process?

"LOL, I posted this recently on Facebook and it's pretty dead on:

My Writing Process:

1.Get a fabulous idea.
2.Procrastinate
3.Write some poetry instead.
4.Write an unrelated article.
5.Write a bunch of ideas down for other stories.
6.Think a lot about how the actual book will go.
7.Start on book.
8.Throw out everything I thought about how the book will go.
9.Write the book in spurts.
10.Finish the book and never want to see it again.
11.Edit, etc, publish, publicize.
12.Wonder how the hell I can go through this process again."

What is in store next?

"I love my characters so much I really would like to continue on with the two main characters in A Taste for Mystery; write a whole book around two from a paranormal short story in Anger's Children (because I've already set up their world too and it would be sooo interesting); and I literally have a seven book series on paper for my Young Adult/New Adult novel Erasing: Shadows that I could continue. I have generations of shenanigans planned there.

But my next work will most likely be in humor. I think. Maybe I should take a vote. : ) "