Diet of Death @AngPompano

 LUCY BURDETTE: I’m so happy to have Ang Pompano back today to introduce his second published book, Diet of Death. Congratulations Ang! You know how much I love your character Quincy. So let’s start with this question: How much of you is in him? 

ANG POMPANO: It’s great to be back at Jungle Red, Lucy. Everyone here is so generous and encouraging to other authors. I feel the Reds are the backbone of the New England Crime Writing Family. 

But let me get back to your question. It’s true there is a lot of me that’s in Quincy. But I also gave him a few problems that I’ve been lucky enough to avoid. He’s had a failed marriage whereas Annette and I celebrated our 48^th anniversary on June 30. He’s haunted by the thought that he can’t live up to the standards of the brother he never met. His brother died in southeast Asia before he was born. I never had a brother, though I do have a couple of friends who are like brothers. And I know of someone who was a “replacement child” and went through all that goes along with that.

Quincy, like me, jokes around a lot and sometimes it works to his disadvantage. 

The biggest difference between us is that while I’d rather watch Hank on TV, Quincy wants to be an investigative reporter. His former college roommate is a magazine editor and promises him an investigative reporting job, but first he has to fill in for Betty Ann Green, until she is available to start her “Cooking with Betty” column. The column written by Quincy becomes wildly popular before he learns that Betty doesn’t exist. 

Lucy: I think you've told me before that the idea for the book is based on several real doctors. Tell us about them and how you changed things up in your story. 

ANG; I’m a follower of holistic medicine. Many of the things that were preached by Carlton Fredericks forty years ago and considered quackery are mainstream now. The diet guru in the book, Dr. Tolzer, also preaches some offbeat ideas. Then there was Herman Tarnower, a cardiologist who invented the Scarsdale Diet. Doctor Tarnower was killed by a woman he was having an affair with. I’ll say that Dr. Tolzer also invented a fad diet, The Westport Diet, and was killed in the book, but I’ll leave it up to Quincy to tell you who did it. 

Lucy: About the cooking: Quincy masquerades as a food columnist in this book. And I hope it won't hurt his feelings if i say his dishes sound a bit well, disgusting. How do your cooking skills compare to Quincy's?

ANG: Seriously? You think tiramisu made with Twinkies is disgusting? I’m quite proud of inventing that recipe. I had to make it to write about it and I’d say it’s right up there with Beer Butt Chicken, another Quincy favorite. 

Lucy: Quincy is a cozy-ish character, and we've all heard that cozy readers prefer female lead characters. How did you decide to go ahead with this?

Lottie, Lucy, Ang, and Chris celebrate DIET OF DEATH

ANG: You, Chris Falcone, and I have been in a writing group for over 20 years, so you know how many times I’ve heard that from agents and acquisition editors. I’ve asked that question on blogs and social media, and of my friends in Sisters in Crime. The answer was always, “Of course I’d read about a male protagonist, if he wasn’t a jerk.” That’s the key, the main character can’t be a jerk. Quincy might make some social mistakes, as anyone might, but at the heart of it, he’s a good guy. He’s respectful of women, and appreciates the many strong women in his life including his neighbor Mary Ticarelli (I love writing older characters), Sergeant Nina, and Megan, who runs Dr. Tolzer’s Westport Diet Institute. He’s not afraid to admit that he’s not always right. Which leads me right into your next question.

Lucy: This time around, you made the choice to self-publish. Can you tell us about that decision, and maybe things that surprised you along the way?

ANG: I’m not always right. For years, my wife Annette, urged me to indie-publish. See that? I couldn’t bring myself to use the words self-publish. My reluctance was an ego thing. Many people, including myself, felt self-publishing didn’t equal published. The perception was that if it didn’t go through the professional publishing process the quality wouldn’t be there. So I stuck with my dream and with a lot of support from family and friends, the week before my 72^nd birthday, WHEN IT’S TIME FOR LEAVING was traditionally published. And although it went on to get an Agatha First Novel Nomination, I wondered, is that all there is? Then I started noticing excellent indie books by friends such as Susan Hubbard (Life at Last), Sharon Daynard (Murder Points North), and P. Jo Ann Burgh (State v. Claus). I picked their brains and learned the secret is professional editing and a professional cover. The marketing and publicity from most smaller publishers falls on the author anyway. At the rate I was going, it was either become a hybrid author or wait until I was 102 before the next book. So I went for it and voila! Quincy and DIET OF DEATH became a reality. 

The short answer to your question is, though I drove myself a little crazy, I’m happy with the results. What about you Reds? Have you ever done something you loved even though it drove you crazy? 

 

About DIET OF DEATH: Betty Ann Green is the Oprah of the cooking world. No wonder cookbook authors, celebrity chefs, and weight-loss experts alike would kill for a mention in the “Cooking with Betty” column in On Topic Magazine. Diet Guru, Dr. Alan Tolzer, is no exception. He craves the chance for instant success for his latest Westport Diet Book with an interview by the columnist. It’s enough to make him swallow his pride and try to patch up his long-standing feud with the reclusive Betty. No surprise there. Everyone sells their soul in one way or another in the cooking industry. But murder is on the menu when Betty’s assistant, Quincy Lazzaro, arrives for the interview. Quincy becomes entangled and his complicated relationships with both Betty and investigating police sergeant Nina Estevez is nothing less than a recipe for disaster. Bringing the murderer to justice without exposing the secret to Betty’s success proves to be more difficult than a fad diet.

About the author: Ang Pompano’s short stories have appeared in many anthologies, including Malice Domestic’s MYSTERY MOST EDIBLE. His first novel WHEN IT’S TIME FOR LEAVING, was nominated for an Agatha Best First Novel Award. A member of Mystery Writers of America, he was a awarded a Helen McCloy/MWA scholarship for a novel in progress. He served for many years as a board member of Sisters in Crime New England and has been on the New England Crime Bake Committee for fifteen years. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, and their two rescue dogs.