Happy Monday to you all!
I’ve just finished writing a series of sweet romances as part of The Unknown Series.
**A booktokker admonished that we are not allowed to refer to ‘clean’ romances, so let’s stick to ‘sweet’ then. ‘Clean’ apparently eludes to sex being dirty. I must admit, it never crossed my mind but I suppose we see the world as we are. ‘Sweet’ it is then.
Anyways, I finished this series and decided to move onto another genre I love watching and reading: cozy mysteries.
For those who are not familiar with the genre, cozies, as we like to call them, include mysteries, crime, and other stories. They are basically the ‘sweet’ version of the big brother genre. There’s nothing explicit in cozies, just mysteries and puzzles with loads of adventure along the way.
Some other hard-core characteristics of the genre are tested and stretched frequently.
Female sleuths usually dominate cozies. They’re always set in a cozy, small, and fairly close-knit community or society. This could be a small, quaint town. Some authors love to make the sleuth a pet. The pet solves the crimes with the help of their human, of course.
The sleuth will always have sidekicks. Those will be the comedic element or the voice of wisdom. They could be the muscle or even the romantic element. Even though romance is seldom part of the story. Of course, pets could also be the sidekicks in some way or form.
Cozies are usually mysteries. These mysteries could be crime mysteries. They could also be murder mysteries. Alternatively, they might be any other type of puzzle your sleuth needs to solve.
The cozies set in the 1920’s are hugely popular. Kerry Greenwood wrote one of my favorite series from this time era. The series features Miss Phryne Fisher as the sleuth. The fabulous Essie Davis did an excellent job at bringing Miss Fisher to television. Even though it’s not available in South Africa, I binged it for the short time YouTube missed it.
I would lie if I did not admit that Murder She Wrote was and still is a firm favourite. Jessica Fletcher, played by the late Dame Angela Lansbury, did an excellent job at sleuthing. I loved the innocent curiosity she portrayed in her sleuthing. Not to mention her wit that miraculously solved an unsolvable murder. I must acknowledge that Jessica Fletcher’s role as a novelist greatly appealed to me.
The latest cozy mystery that I’m loving too much is Only Murders In the Building, currently on Netflix. Even though Mabel Mora is the actual sleuth, her two much older male sidekicks are just amazing. Steve Martin and Martin Short are just amazing in their roles as goldy oldies!
There’s so much more, but these are my favourites.
Murder She Wrote is definitely the one motivation for loving this genre so thoroughly. It’s also the greatest inspiration for the new series I’m planning at the moment.
I told you I have one planned.
- Do I have a female sleuth? Yes. She’s young and super curious.
- Do I have a specific era for my series? Yes. I love the late 1940s and 1950s. It was very exciting, where the world came back to life after the horrors of WWII. So many advancements in trade and enterprise, inventions and economics. What’s not to love about this era?
- Do I have a specific setting for this series? Yes. Kensington, Johannesburg, was the most affluent neighborhood. It was the heydays of Johannesburg after the war. The bioscope, tram system, multi-story shopping experiences, sports, and culture all boomed in this time. I chose this neighborhood because it had everything a modern small society needed. However, it also had all sorts of conflicts and intrigue. These could create the perfect opportunities for murder and mayhem! And I’m curious about the history of Joburg.
- Will there be a pet or an animal sleuth? No unfortunately not. I don’t want to put any animal in a place where they can be harmed.
- Will my characters have sidekicks? At the moment, yes. She will have two. And I would like for every book to have a temporary additional sidekick to take part in every book.
It will become available on Patreon as a serial while I write the book. I will let you know when I get there.
Do you have a question for me about this new series?
I’ll get to the other details in the future such as the timeline and where it will be available.
That’s it for today. Please let me know in the comments if you have questions.
Cheers until next time!