Judi McCoy Finds the Mystery in Dog-walking

Interviewed by Sandra Parshall

The winner of a free copy of Judi's book is Annette. Send your snail mail address to me at sandraparshall@yahoo.com and I'll put it into the mail. Congratulations!

Judi McCoy has been a successful romance novelist for more than fifteen years, garnering many four-star reviews for her work. Now she’s turning her talents to mystery with a humorous series featuring New York City dog-walker Ellie Engleman, who has a telepathic connection with her canine charges. The first in the series is Hounding the Pavement, published this week. A starred review in Publishers Weekly said, “Somehow managing to avoid every talking animal mystery cliche, McCoy fills this delightful story with humor, quirky characters, and delicious hints of romance.”

Judi is also a veteran women’s gymnastics judge and enjoys gardening and raising orchids in her spare time. She lives on Virginia’s eastern shore with her husband and three dogs. Visit her web site at www.judimccoy.com.

Everyone who leaves a comment today will be entered in a drawing for a free copy of Hounding the Pavement. Check back tomorrow to find out if you won – the winner’s name will be posted at the top of this blog entry.


Q. You’ve written a number of romances. Why did you cross over to the dark side and start writing mysteries? What is it about mysteries that appeals to you?

A. The crossover seemed natural. I’d run out of ideas for a ‘straight’ romance and came up with a character. My agent liked the idea and so did my sister, and they both encouraged me to take the idea and run. I liked the idea of getting the reader involved in the story (who did it, why, how?). Writing the books just seemed the next step in my career.

Q. Are you writing a series?

A. Yes, it’s a series (I’d like to do 12 books). My heroine is a New York City dog walker. If you don’t know about the dog walker business in NY, you’re in for a surprise. Most of them make $100,000+ every year, not counting tips and money for pet sitting. They also have keys to all the apartments they visit. (They’re bonded and insured.) The accessability to mystery was huge.

Q. What was the inspiration for your mystery protagonist and her adventures?

A. I love dogs and always wanted to be a dog walker. Unfortunately, I never lived anywhere I could do it. The idea for a romance about the profession had simmered in the back of my mind for a long time. When I had the chance to do a story, I decided to make the series work.

Q. Have you found that you have to do more research for a mystery than for a romance?

A. I certainly did for this one. I spent several days in NY, sitting on a bench on Fifth Avenue and Central Park just soaking up the atmosphere. Then I got brave and talked to dog walkers, doormen, anyone who was walking a single dog, too. I also called the Central Park East precinct and spoke to a CRM. He allowed me to come in and spend a couple of hours with a detective, an invaluable opportunity.

Q. Was this the first time you’d tried writing mysteries? Was selling the first one easier than you expected, or harder?

A. Avon, my romance publisher, rejected the book(s) without even reading them. That made my agent determined. She knew they were great and she planned to show them how foolish they were to refuse them. It only took her a month to sell the first three books.

Q. Why did you decide to give your profit from the first mystery to a humane organization? How important are animals in your life?

A. Best Friends is an amazing animal rescue charity. I’ve admired them for years, but I never realized how much they did until I watched their series, Dogtown, on the National Geographic channel. Once I saw the show, I was hooked. I also knew I had to do some crazy promoting to get my name and the books ‘out there’ so I came up with the royalty giveaway. Once I thought up the idea, there was never a doubt in my mind that I had to see it through. Even my husband agreed. I’ve had several wonderful discussions with people at Best Friends and they’re thrilled.

Q. Do you write full-time? Do you outline and stick to a writing routine, or do you wing it?

A. I write full-time, every day. I’m up at 6:30, walk my three small dogs, have breakfast and plan my day. I usually get to my computer by 8:30
and I’m there until 1. Then I take my lunch break and it’s back to my office until 5:30. My husband also works from home, so we’re together yet separate all day. If I have errands (groceries, hair cut, etc) I plan my time to do it all in one trip on one day.

Q. What do you believe are your greatest strengths as a writer? What aspects of craft are you still trying to master?

A. My greatest strength? I had to think hard about that one, because I’m not sure I have one. How about my sense of humor? I try to impart joy and fun into every book I write. No one gets murdered [onstage] in my books. Ellie finds the body, and along with her dog Rudy, solves the mystery, much to the dismay of her love interest, Sam, a detective. The hook is: Ellie talks to her dog and those she walks and they talk back to her. She hears them clearly in her mind, and oftentimes gets caught holding a conversation with them. That adds to the fun.

Q. What writers have inspired you and taught you by example? Whose books do you rush to read as soon as they’re published?

A. I love the Stephanie Plum series and I’ve used it as the basis for 12 books and no more. People have complained lately that the series is dragging on too long. Stephanie needs to make a choice between Joe and Ranger and decide if the bounty hunting business is really for her. I never want that said about Ellie and Sam. I’ll wrap up all the loose ends and make it work in 12 books. I also love Cleo Coyle and her coffee mysteries and Joanna Carl and the chocolate mysteries.

Q. What’s in the future for you? Will you continue writing mysteries exclusively, or do you plan to divide your time between mystery and romance?

A. The books/characters have been optioned for a weekly television series already, so I’d like to try my hand at script writing, or working with a writer to transfer some of the books to shows. Unless I get a great romance idea, I doubt I’ll go back to that genre. In reality, the dog walker books are very romantic. Ellie and Sam go to bed in book one, and there’s a regular romantic sex scene, just like I’ve written in my earlier books.

Q. Where can readers can meet you?

A. I plan to travel to quite a few states. I’ll be in the East Brunswick area for a signing, and probably the DC area later. In the beginning of April, I’ll be in Charlotte, NC, for a conference and signing, middle of the month in the Dallas area, and at the end I’ll be at Romantic Times in Orlando signing.
The first weekend in May is Malice Domestic, and I hope to travel to Pittsburgh to do the big mystery signing there [the Oakmont Mystery Festival on the Monday following Malice]. I’m out of breath just thinking about it, but that’s as far as I’ve planned.

Q. In parting, do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

A. I teach a two-day aspiring author course every year at RT (this year in Orlando) and the first thing I tell the newbies is, “Writers write. They don’t talk about writing or tell everyone they want to write. They put their butt in a chair EVERY day and they write.” That’s probably the most important thing a new author will ever hear.

A New Voice: Gabriella Herkert

Interviewed by Sandra Parshall

Romance, murder, a witty heroine, and a filthy rich cat -- what more can you ask for in a humorous mystery? In Gabriella Herkert's first novel, Catnapped, Seattle attorney Sara Townley is at the bottom of the legal food chain, and when a cat worth millions disappears Sara is ordered to find him. The missing feline, whose owner left him a massive estate managed by the law firm Sara works for, leads her straight to a dead body. At the same time, the Navy man Sara married in Vegas after a (very) brief acquaintance returns from sea duty and informs Sara he wants a real marriage, not an annulment. The author of Catnapped describes herself as "an evil corporate lawyer working in-house for a high-tech firm near Seattle" and assures me that this drawing is an excellent likeness of her.


When most people think of lawyers writing crime novels, they think of authors like Grisham and Fairstein. Did you ever consider writing a legal thriller?

I've written a series of short stories (as yet unpublished) that include a character named Michael Morrow. They fall more into the thriller category in that they involved darker themes and are more plot dependent, although I think Michael makes a great character, too.

What inspired you to write a humorous animal-themed series?

I admit I'm bent. The smart-aleck part of the book is in my genes and since that is the case, I wanted to make my parents laugh out loud. As for the animal theme, Catnapped is based on an actual case that included a cat. Since I'd grown up with animals, I just let the cat in the story take on the personality of my cat, Flash. That feline always cracked me up.

Have you always wanted to write, or is this a recent interest? Why did you choose the mystery genre?

I've been writing, one way or another, since I was eight. It was a natural outgrowth of loving to read. I didn't choose mystery so much as it chose me. I write what I enjoy and I've loved mysteries since Nancy Drew.

How long did it take you to write the first book? How did you fit writing in with your day job?

The first book took a long time. I had written the first fifty pages of Catnapped and submitted it to the Maui Writers' Conference contest. When it won a Rupert Hughes award, I thought I could go home and use that energy to power through the rest of the book. Flying home from Maui, I couldn't wait. It was September 9, 2001. I didn't feel funny for a year. I wrote a lot and that was okay, too, but I didn't make progress on the book. I finally finished the first draft in late 2003. I polished for a year and it took another year to get my first agent.

You went the contest route – Catnapped was short-listed for the Debut Dagger Award, the St. Martin’s/Private Eye Writers of America Best First Novel Award, the Kiss of Death and Maui Writer's Conference awards, and it won honorable mention in the Writer's Digest contest. How did these competitions benefit you? Would you recommend that aspiring writers enter contests?

The contests were great. Not only did I get great support and feedback from people who had a lot of experience in the field, I met several great people who continue to form the basis for my "community" of writers. I would recommend that aspiring writers take every opportunity to get read. Share with family and friends. Enter the contests. Dare your writer friends to enter, too. Blog. Whatever. Every experience encourages and keeps you on the path to putting pen to paper. The big bonus is every day you write, five more stories will be waiting for their turn.

Tell us about your path to publication. Was it easy or difficult to find an agent? To find a publisher?

Because I'd had success in the contests, I thought getting an agent would come easier than it did. I had very specific criteria for the agent I wanted and that made it harder. My short list was very short indeed. Then again, the positive results I'd had helped me stay confident that my work would find a home -- a great home with an agent and a publisher who really believed in me and my writing. Having said that, I am working with my second agent now. The relationships are evolutionary and it's helped me to keep an open mind.

Did anything about the publishing process surprise you, or did things happen pretty much as you expected?

The biggest surprise is how much time I have to spend on getting the word out myself. Even with a big house and a supportive publisher, most of this still falls on the author. These are time pressures on top of meeting deadlines and the day job, friends, family etc. I am so lucky my "peeps" understand.

How have your colleagues in the legal profession reacted to news of your second career?

My boss has been incredibly supportive as have my colleagues in the legal group. Of course, they look at me funny when I ask if they've ever been stuck in the trunk of a car. Naturally, every "ex" thinks he's the hero and every family member thinks I've turned them into a killer. As for the people I am negotiating deals with, it works for me that they know I know where to dispose of a dead body.

Do you have a critique group or individuals who read your work before your agent and editor see it? What aspects of writing have they helped you with most?

I couldn't have finished without my critique group. If nothing else, these are the people who will kick you in the butt if you haven't written anything to bring to group. They'll tell you the sex isn't sexy and the jokes aren't funny. I am better because of them. And they still showed up at the first signing.

How much promotion do you have planned for Catnapped? Which conferences will you be attending?

I just came back from Bouchercon in Anchorage. There's nothing like the conferences to motivate and encourage finishing the next book. It's not just the big name authors I'm thrilled to meet, either. The biggest push comes from the readers who come to share their own stories and tell me how Sara or Russ or one of my other characters reminds them of their crazy cousin Lucy or hilarious next door neighbor. It's the biggest high there is for a writer. I'm doing some more local signings in and around Seattle. I've got a library reading coming up next week at my local library I'm really looking forward to and several more conferences on the schedule: Left Coast Crime in Denver in March, Malice Domestic in Virginia in April, Bouchercon 2008 in Baltimore, and Bouchercon 2009 in Indianapolis as well as several romance writers conferences. My schedule is listed on my website at www.gabriellaherkert.com. I'd also love to talk to any book clubs who want to talk with me. Send an email to gabi_herkert@hotmail.com and we can set something up.

What’s next for Sara Townley?

Let's just say that marriage and mayhem will plague Sara for some time to come. She's also got to learn to speak 'Connor' and deal with his less-than-predictable family. Catnapped: An Animal Instinct Mystery is available now. Doggone! comes out in September 2008. An as-yet-untitled book 3 is scheduled for 2009. I expect Sara's quick wit will carry her into even worse trouble than a bigamy rumor. I can't wait!