Tornado Alley Mystery Writers Tornado Alley Mystery Writers

     Mary Anna Evans, recently nominated for both an Edgar and an Agatha award for The Bloomsbury Handbook to Agatha Christie, teaches mystery writing at the University of Oklahoma. In addition to a Master of Arts in creative writing, she holds degrees in physics and engineering, a background that is ideal for writing her new historical mystery novel, The Physicists' Daughter, set in WWII-era New Orleans. Listen to Mary Anna's interview to hear her perspective on how justice, the scientific method, and even romantic love are manifested through mystery writing.

Lori Altebaumer from Stephenville, Texas, was a 2021 finalist for the fiction award from Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Fiction Writers for her romantic suspense novel, A Firm Place to Stand. This novel is the first in her new series in which ordinary people from a small community do extraordinary things.

Lori describes herself as a grandmother who loves to write and teach others what she has learned about writing. In this interview, Lori discusses her process for creating a community and its characters. She also shares her insights on the intrinsic importance of the community's setting as a vital part of the story.             

Shelley Levisay, an attorney, author, and musician living in Shawnee, Oklahoma, candidly discusses women's issues connected with domestic violence, a major theme in her novel, Sooner Secrets (2022). Having worked on both sides of the criminal justice system as both a prosecutor and a criminal defense lawyer, she writes true crime, crime fiction, and legal thrillers. She established her own law firm in 2014, but when she isn't writing books, legal motions, or briefs, she spends her time playing the piano and singing. Listen to a busy attorney and writer talk about finding balance and doing what she loves.

Oklahoma City writer, Kat Lewis, reads from her novel, Rogue Defender, the first book in her Lethal Nannies romance-thriller series. Her heroine, Serena Black, is the lethal nanny. As Kat explains, "Most nannies are focused on getting their charges to school on time, but Homeland Security has trained Serena to keep her clients alive at all costs." 
Kat also shares moments from her home-schooled, classical education and discusses what she sees as a way forward for people of color and her fiction.  Listen to Kat's insight into how writers can view their creative muse as a prism.

Author and editor Staci Mauney reads from her book, Death by Dice, the first novel in her Bunco Club Mystery series. Set in a small town in Texas, the story's amateur detective, Bridgette Olsen, stumbles on a murder as she opens the door at work one morning. Staci also discusses her career as a freelance writer, blogger, editor, and devotional writer. 
Three of Staci's passions unite in her novel, the spiritual quests of everyday living,  the thrill of mystery novels, and the love of a faithful pet. If you are looking for a cozy mystery or a proofreader or developmental editor, you will enjoy listening to Staci's success story as a writer and as an editor for Prestige Prose, her professional online editing and writing company. 

Amy Shojai, a certified animal behavior consultant and award-winning author of thirty-five pet books, reads from Lost and Found, the first volume in the September Day and Shadow Thriller series. September, the detective character, and her German Shepherd pup, Shadow, encounter danger and mystery against the North Texas backdrop of the novel. Despite her dramatization of animal point of view, be assured this is an exciting adult thriller.

Amy also writes and consults for the pet industry. Her mission is to create an entertaining venue for pet lovers to help them make informed decisions about their animals. If you love animals and stories that include pets or you are looking for tips on how to include animal characters in the your fiction , you will want to tune in.