The Next Big Thing

Seems there's a little blog chain going around the internet called The Next Big Thing, where writers are supposed to answer ten questions about their book. I've been tagged by mystery author Linda Rodriguez. Thanks, Linda! You can click here to read her post and learn about her books.

Here goes!

1. What is your working title of your book?
     My working title is IN SPITE OF MURDER.

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?
     I worked as a police department secretary for ten years and people were constantly telling me to write a book with a PD secretary protagonist. When I lost that job, I figured I'd finally put that knowledge to good use.

3. What genre does your book fall under?
    It's a mystery. Not quite a cozy, as it has a bit of an edge. And it's funny. At least I hope it is.

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
    This is the hardest question! Like Linda, I don't pay attention to most modern actors. My protagonist, Irma Jean, is a six foot tall red head with an attitude, so I imagine she'd be hard to cast. There are two actresses who might fit, but I don't know their names--one is on The Mentalist and the other was in That 70s Show. If Reba McEntire were younger and much taller, she'd be perfect. I'm not sure who I'd cast as Mama, either. I need a five foot tall 70 year old with a strawberry blonde beehive. No clue!

I can do better with the men in the book. Irma Jean's ex-husband Curley would be played by Bradley Cooper. I  have no idea who he is, but I saw his picture on the cover of a magazine in the checkout line once and almost blurted out, "That's Curley!"

And her hunky Irishman love interest, Luke Jameson, is a cross between Simon Baker and Keith Urban. How's that for a combination?

5. What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?
    Police secretary Irma Jean Bennett's day is shot to hell when the Chief drops dead in her office. (I know that's not exactly a synopsis, but you get the idea.)

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
    I'm represented by the fabulous Eliza Dreier at the Carol Mann Agency. She'll be pitching it soon.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
    It's hard to say. I got the idea for it back in 2008 when I lost my job and I wrote a few chapters. Then I put it aside to revise and query another book, which didn't go anywhere. When I finally got serious about it, it didn't take very long to finish. Then I did more than a few revisions. I really have to give a shout out to my former agent, Meredith Barnes. The book is so much better after I made the changes she suggested.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
    It's not as over-the-top as Evanovich, but it's been compared to her books. I think it's more like Nancy Martin's Blackbird Sisters books--kind of cozyish, but not quite.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?
    Getting canned. Enough said.

10. What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?
    Can't you just take my word for it? No? Sigh. Well, it's funny, it's got some strange and quirky characters, and it takes place in a town named Spite. Oh, and I don't want to forget the hot Irishman.

Hey, I'm done! This wasn't so bad, after all!

Here are the authors I'm tagging. Be sure to go to their blogs NEXT WEEK and see their answers to these questions.

Annette Dashofy
Jenna Bennett/Jennie Bentley
C.L. Phillips

Thanks again, Linda! This was fun!