Characters Too Weird To Be True by Nancy J. Cohen
“Florida is a giant bug light for crazy people.” ~Phyllis Smallman, Sleuthfest 2014
It’s no surprise to any author living in Florida that some of the craziest stories we can write are actually inspired by true events in our sunshine state. Join us in exploring a different side of Florida than the travel bureau promotes with our first Blog Hop sponsored by Florida Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. Read on, click the links below to read another member’s view of crazy Florida, comment, share your favorite stories, and enter the contest to win a Kindle Paperwhite.
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Florida has its share of wacky characters. Every Sunday, I buy a newspaper and read through it with a pair of scissors in hand. Inevitably, there’s some article about an interesting resident or an issue that intrigues me. I cut out these articles and file them. Whenever I’m searching for a secret to give a suspect, I’ll glance through these clippings. That’s how I found a cool character who was a funeral director by day and a Samoan fire knife dancer at night. I tracked down the guy, interviewed him at his funeral home and based a character on him in Hair Raiser.
There’s no lack of strange people living in Florida. Criminals move down for the good weather same as other citizens. But most of the interesting characters in the news appear less in the spotlight. It might be a housewife running a prostitution ring, a non-profit administrator embezzling money, or a local teacher found with child porn files on his computer. These are secrets worth considering, because they’ll make the characters in my books seems suspicious. And Florida does have its share of wackos where truth is stranger than fiction.
Another character I used in a book was inspired by a reader at a talk I gave. She’d owned a clothing boutique and mentioned a guy who came in and wanted to try on women’s clothes. This idea was perfect for Murder by Manicure who now has a transvestite in the story. So you never know where inspiration will strike.
For Hanging By A Hair, #11 in the Bad Hair Day mysteries, neighborhood communities played a role in story development. Who hasn’t had trouble with their homeowners’ association? Marla’s husband has a disagreement with their HOA president who is later found dead. Our state’s Native American heritage comes into play in this story with a suspect who is a tribal shaman.
Florida has a rich history, a diverse ecosystem, and a hotbed of issues. All we have to do is read the newspaper for ideas. Thus I’ve dealt with citrus canker, illegal immigrant labor, exotic bird smuggling, child drowning prevention, melanoma detection, and a host of other matters that affect Floridians. Although these issues can be serious, my stories contain humor, a satisfying ending, and a lesson learned. And what have I learned? We never lack for material in sunny South Florida.
Amazon Hardcover: http://www.amazon.com/Hanging-Hair-Nancy-J-Cohen/dp/1432828142
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Hanging-Hair-Bad-Day-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B00JJ2XVUQ/
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hanging-by-a-hair-nancy-j-cohen/1116603785
Nancy J. Cohen has written over twenty romance and mystery novels. She wishes she could style hair like her hairdresser sleuth, Marla Shore, but can usually be found reading instead.
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Blog Commenters can win an ebook copy of either Shear Murder or Writing the Cozy Mystery (your choice). Winner will be announced on April 23. Leave a comment, and your name will automatically be entered. And don’t miss our Grand Prize contest below!
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Click on the link below to Win a KINDLE PAPERWHITE
No purchase is necessary. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. By submitting your entry, you agree to be entered into the participating authors’ email newsletter list. Your information will not be shared with anyone else, and you may unsubscribe at any time. Winner will be notified by email. Authors are not responsible for transmission failures, computer glitches or lost, late, damaged or returned email. Winner agrees for their name to be used in conjunction with the contest on FMWA and authors’ social media sites. U.S. Residents only due to postage constraints.
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Visit our other FMWA Authors and win more prizes:
Victoria Allman, Gator Bites, http://www.victoriaallman.com/blog
Miriam Auerbach, Bonkers in Boca, http://www.miriamauerbach.com/bonkers-in-boca
Gregg E. Brickman, Crazy South Florida—How it got to be home, http://www.GreggEBrickman.com/blog.html
Diane Capri, Fishnado!, http://www.dianecapri.com/blog
Joan Cochran, The Million Dollar Squatter: Crazy in the Land of Coconuts and Bagels, http://www.joanlipinskycochran.com/blog.htm?post=952677
Nancy J. Cohen, Characters Too Weird to Be True, http://nancyjcohen.wordpress.com
JD Daniels, He Did What? http://www.live-from-jd.com
Joy Wallace Dickinson, In Florida, It’s Great to Be a Cracker, http://www.FindingJoyinFlorida.com
Linda Gordon Hengerer, Crazy Treasure on the Treasure Coast, http://footballfoodandfiction.blogspot.com/
Victoria Landis, Eavesdropping 101, http://www.victorialandis.com
Sandy Parks, Keep your eyes to the Florida skies, http://www.sandyparks.wordpress.com
Neil Plakcy, Moscow on the Intracoastal, http://www.mahubooks.blogspot.com/
Johnny Ray, Utilizing Google Plus Air to Facilitate Author Interviews, http://www.sirjohn.us
Joanna Campbell Slan, Honey, You’ll Never Guess What Rolled Up in the Surf, http://www.joannaslan.blogspot.com
LOVE the titles. These do sound like fun to read.
I hope you’ll check them out, Mary!
These titles sound like great fun, Nancy. I’m putting every one of them on my wishlist!
I hope you do! Thanks for visiting.
I LOVE this….I live in FL and I agree FL is melting pot of the weird and unusual!
Yes, you have probably encountered some weirdness yourself.
Sounds like so much fun.
It’s fun, living in Florida and writing about the strange things that happen here.
Personally, I love humor in mystery novels. Characters? The more eccentric the better. Florida does seem to specialize however. Witness Carl Hiassen’s novels. Best wishes for the success of your new mystery. I know it will be just as satisfying a read as the previous books.
Thanks so much, Jacqueline. I like to read mysteries with humor, too. If I want to be scared, I’ll read the newspaper.
I spent two months in Florida and loved every minute. Before my trip, I heard about some of the wacky and “entertaining” people I would probably run in to. It was true. Florida has a unique variety of characters not seen in other parts on the country. What fun using them as inspirations for the characters in your books. Whenever I want ideas for crazy characters, I turn to the newspaper police blotters. Thanks for sharing, Nancy.
Well, that’s an unusual source, the police blotters. Our newspaper has a weekly column of the weird and unusual. Otherwise, I look in the local and community sections for reports on our less than ordinary citizens.
Nancy, Florida isn’t the only state where wackos proliferate. In Wisconsin, they’re not as visible because of the harsh winters, but they’re there. Michael Giorgio, a mystery writer friend, does little vignettes of his experiences waiting for the bus on the corner of 7th and Wisconsin in downtown Milwaukee. Priceless! The world is full of material for writers.
Yes, indeed the world is full of material for our books no matter the genre or location.
I love hearing about how authors come up with their characters. If I were a writer, I’d be able to just sit on my porch and watch the neighbors. I’d have plenty of fun characters to choose from! Thanks for sharing – I love your books!
Speaking of neighbors, some of Marla’s encounters in Hanging By A Hair are based on personal experience.
love the way you get ideas. I live in south Georgia and our papers are filled with crazy stories too.
Ideas are everywhere, it’s having the time to write them that is the inhibiting factor.
Fun post! You have a lot of characters down there! Actually, they’re everywhere! It’s remembering to make notes that sometimes slows me. Gotta get those scissors out.
Yes, clipping articles or taking notes is essential. Otherwise, I’ll forget my idea.
Florida does have the best characters. All of mine are a result of my Florida experience, even the ones that I “flew in” for elsewhere for story purposes.
Our state has such a diverse population, too. That lends an interesting…and often volatile…mix.
What a fun post! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by, Brooke!
HI NAN!
Enjoyed all of your books I have read and look forward to the latest.
Thank you, Barbara. I appreciate your stopping by here.
Interesting characters
The stories you have written about all sound terrific.
I hope you’ll look them up!
And somehow, Nancy, you always make the crazy seem quite plausible in your stories. Looking forward to the new one.
I hope my characters seem plausible. Thanks for stopping by, Vicki.
Now why didn’t I think of this? I haven’t read our newspaper in a very long time. I used to clip articles and file them away in my “Ideas” file. Thanks, Nancy, for reminding me of the possibilities to be found in the newspapers.
They’re still good for something!
I am very fond of reading newspapers and listening to local news about some of the strangest people and their antics. I send all of our Northern “celebrity” stories to my friend in NC and she sends me her newspaper stories; we are always trying to find a way to top the other with craziness. Most of the time it is a draw as “they” are everywhere. Have enjoyed every book that I have read of yours Nancy but still have a lot more to order and read; have been confined to bed for 23 hours a day for almost two months now and yet I am not even feeling up to reading too much, which is very sad isn’t it??? Can’t concentrate but hope that will change soon, 🙂 Hope you are doing much better yourself
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Cynthia
I’m so sorry to hear you aren’t well. If you’re not feeling up to reading, how about audio books?
I enjoyed reading about how you get inspiration for your books. I enjoy cozy mysteries that are mixed with humor and a little romance. Quirky characters are a bonus. Thanks for sharing.
I like those elements in the books I read, too. Suspense, romance and mystery with a touch of humor make for a great blend.
So true, Nancy, this is the land where truth is stranger than fiction. Love your wacky characters!
I like your wacky people, too. Dirty Harriet especially.
After my one visit to Florida – all I remember is rain every afternoon. California is also known for whacky people. Viva la differance!
What time of year were you in Florida? Our rainy season runs June 1 to Nov 1.
Nancy, you have to be the MOST organized author I’ve ever met. Scissors while reading the paper? So smart!
Yes, you never know what gem might be hidden in the pages that you can use in your next book.
Nancy, great examples. I’m still thinking about that funeral director-fire dancer. Stranger than fiction, indeed!
Joy
Yeah, that was cool. And I had clipped that article about this guy from the newspaper.
The winner of my giveaway is deannad414. Please contact me with your email address.