Mary Cunningham is this week’s interviewee The Cozy 52. Read on to learn more about Mary’s travel agent days, her groupie days (yes, you read that right), and her most prized possession.
Who or What is The Cozy 52? Each week I will be sharing an interview with someone involved with Cozy Mysteries – an author, blogger, Facebook Group host, podcaster, cover designer – so that we can showcase this amazing community! I hope you’ll discover some new authors, plus learn more about what goes on behind the scenes with the people who write, publish and promote cozy mysteries!
Introducing Mary Cunningham
NAME: Mary Cunningham
LIST ALL YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES: My first cozy mystery series is Andi Anna Jones Mysteries. Margaritas, Mayhem & Murder was published April 27, 2022.
HOW ARE YOUR COZY MYSTERIES PUBLISHED? Traditionally – The Wild Rose Press
The Q&A
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF
Wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, dog lover, writer – in that order. I live in West Georgia with my husband and canine “daughter”, Lucy. While writing is my passion, golf and water aerobics are a necessary diversion, and good exercise! The older I get, the easier the pounds accumulate.
LIST THREE FUN FACTS ABOUT YOURSELF THAT WE WOULDN’T READ IN YOUR ‘OFFICIAL’ BIO.
- I have a dry wit, inherited from my dad’s side of the family.
- I once was a Bee Gees groupie, met Barry Gibb and was kissed by him!
- I’m a counter: I silently count steps, each slice when cutting vegetables, every single stir when I’m mixing ingredients…well, you get the idea.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE COZY MYSTERIES?
I kind of fell into it. I wrote a mystery, submitted it to publishers and found out Margaritas, Mayhem & Murder was classified as a Cozy. I’d read cozy mysteries for years, and loved them. So the fit was natural.
WHAT SUBGENRE(S) OR THEMES OF COZY MYSTERIES DO YOU WRITE?
Travel agent and travel would be subgenres. Andi Anna Jones owns a travel agency but spends much of her time traveling around the world solving murder mysteries.
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR COZY MYSTERY SERIES. WHAT INSPIRES YOUR SERIES?
Andi Anna Jones, mediocre travel agent, with an inferiority complex about her job, her looks, and her single status, discovers her “inner sleuth” in Margaritas, Mayhem & Murder.
Keeping with some excellent advice I got years ago, to “write what you know’, her character and job are loosely based on a horrifying stint I had in North Miami Beach as a travel agent.
I was truly awful, but fortunately worked with a fabulous agent named Ellen who recognized my fear and would usually jump in to help when I got stuck. In honor of Ellen, Andi’s sidekick and true manager of Graves Travel Agency is Ellie. She saves Andi’s backside in the same way Ellen saved mine.
WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE LOVE TO READ COZY MYSTERIES?
With our busy schedules, I think readers like exciting, fun, fast-paced mysteries with memorable characters. I know I do!
ASIDE FROM BEING AN AUTHOR, ARE YOU INVOLVED IN THE COZY COMMUNITY IN ANY OTHER WAY?
I am involved in quite a few cozy mystery groups and contribute on a regular basis.
WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVOURITE WRITERS?
Tolkien, Steinbeck, John Irving, H.G. Wells. Favorite contemporary authors are, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Regan Black, J.K. Rowling, Mary Kay Andrews, Lucy Burdette, and so many more!
IF YOU WERE MAROONED ON A DESERTED ISLAND, WHAT 3 BOOKS WOULD YOU WANT WITH YOU?
The Time Machine, The Hobbit, and East of Eden.
DO YOU HAVE ANY PROJECTS COMING UP THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE WITH US?
A new Andi Anna Jones Mystery, Sazerac, Sleuth & Slay is being edited and should be released early next year. Andi flies to New Orleans to investigate the disappearance of a client. A deserted Mardi Gras warehouse, an eerie bayou, and numerous alligators spell danger for our amateur sleuth.
The Quickie 5
- FAVOURITE FOOD: tacos and burritos
- BEVERAGE OF CHOICE: Coke Zero
- MOST PRIZED POSSESSION: A 200-year-old print passed down from my grandparents.
- SUMMER OR WINTER? Fall. Don’t like cold. Don’t like heat. I look forward to cool weather and college sports.
- FAVOURITE VACATION SPOT? A cabin in the mountains
To keep up to date with Mary Cunningham online, you can connect with her on:
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | AMAZON | BOOKBUB
Thanks, so much, Stephanie! Your blog is fantastic!!
Thanks Mary! And thank you again for your time in answering my questions! It was great such fun to read your answers!
Love the interview! I’m surprised that your favorite beverage isn’t a margarita! It would go so well with those tacos and burritos! Souns good to me, anyway! 🙂 I’m looking forward to reading your series!
Thanks, Anastasia! Oh, I do enjoy margarita or a mohito on occasion! Thanks for stopping by and commenting!