When I’m not mapping out a fresh crime scene for the Parchment Paper Mysteries, you’ll invariably find me in the kitchen, surrounded by dusting sheets of flour and the comforting warmth of the oven. For a culinary cozy mystery author, baking isn’t just a hobby; it is a vital part of the world-building process. And…
As a culinary cozy mystery author, my kitchen is just as important as my writing desk. For me, the two are inextricably linked. I include recipes at the end of my books, but what people don’t often see is the rigorous (and delicious) recipe testing that goes on beforehand. It is a brilliant excuse to…
People often imagine a writer’s life as one of solitary confinement—a lone figure hunched over a typewriter in a dark room, perhaps with a single candle for company. I’m happy to report that the reality is much more social! While the actual act of putting words on the page is a private one, I find…
There is a common misconception that mystery authors spend their evenings exclusively with a magnifying glass and a stack of Golden Age detective novels. While I do love a classic whodunit, a significant portion of my life is spent reading far outside my own genre. If you were to peer at my current bedside table,…
Authors are frequently asked where they get their ideas. People often look for a singular moment of divine inspiration—a sudden bolt of lightning or a dream that provides a fully formed plot. For me, it isn’t quite like that. It’s far slower and subtler than that, and it’s infinitely more satisfying. Once I decide to…
After telling you about the inspiring places around it, it’s time to look at Hebden Bridge itself. While it doesn’t have historic literary stars like Haworth and Heptonstall, it has something perhaps more vibrant: a living, breathing community of writers, poets, and avid readers. A Sanctuary for Stories For decades, Hebden Bridge has been a…
While not literary in the sense of a classic novel, the story of the Cragg Vale Coiners is a legendary piece of local history that has inspired a wealth of modern literature, most notably Benjamin Myers’ brilliant and visceral novel, The Gallows Pole. For anyone interested in the darker corners of West Yorkshire’s past, this…
If Haworth is the soul of 19th-century literature, then Heptonstall, perched precariously on the ridge above Hebden Bridge, is the haunting heart of the 20th. This ancient weaving village, with its steep, bone-rattling cobblestones and its two churches (one ruined, one standing), is the final resting place of Sylvia Plath, one of the most influential…
Just a short, dramatic drive over the tops from Hebden Bridge, where I live, lies Haworth, a village that has become synonymous with the most famous literary family in history. For a mystery writer, the Brontës represent the ultimate closed circle—three sisters and a brother, isolated in a parsonage, creating vast, tumultuous worlds from the…
When I visited York last year, I wasn’t there for the winding cobbled streets or the dramatic cathedral. Instead of my usual haunts, I took a trip into the Howardian Hills to stay at Ampleforth Abbey. Some might think a Benedictine monastery is too peaceful a setting for a writer who spends her days thinking…