The Unrelated Maxwells

DEBORAH CROMBIE: What a deal we have for you today--It's two Maxwells for the price of one!! Well, you don't actually get two BOOKS for the price of one, but two of our favorite lovely authors here on Jungle Red, Edith Maxwell (writing as Maddie Day) and Alyssa Maxwell, interviewing each other. And they both have new books out this week! Here's Edith's NO GRATER CRIME:

 And Alyssa's MURDER AT WAKEHURST:

Great covers, both! Take it away, ladies!

Edith/Maddie: Thank you so much for having us, Debs! We, the two unrelated Maxwells, love reading Jungle Reds and commenting, so it’s always a treat to be featured on the front blog. We decided to interview each other about our new releases - Murder at Wakehurst (Alyssa’s) and No Grater Crime (mine, as Maddie Day) – and about the writing life.

Alyssa: Edith, your Quaker Midwife series, set in Amesbury, MA, has an incredibly strong sense of place that makes the town a character in its own right. We know you live there, and that your personal perceptions and experiences in day-to-day life find their way onto the page probably as easily as breathing. But your Country Store Mysteries take place in South Lick, Indiana. Is this a real place, or a fictional version of a real place? Have you ever lived in Indiana? How do you do your research all the way from Massachusetts?

Edith/Maddie: Thank you for that! Yes, I lived in the next county over from Brown County in southern Indiana for five years while earning a doctorate in linguistics at Indiana University. The town of South Lick is fictional, although there is a real South Lick Road that runs along South Lick Creek. I’m quite fond of that corner of the world. It’s quieter, with a slower pace of life. Brown County is wooded and hilly and truly lovely. I’ve made several research trips and am overdue for another one, but I’m still too COVID-freaked out to travel yet. One of my sisters is a Hoosier, so I often hit her up for information, although she’s in the northern half of the state.     

Alyssa, I love your series set in Newport, Rhode Island. You clearly know the place deeply, both now and then. I’ve lived ninety miles north in Massachusetts for forty years and have yet to visit Newport, but I feel like it I know it from your books. What is your connection to Newport, and why did you set a historical series there? Talk about your own historical research, too.

Alyssa: Edith, you must visit Newport! You absolutely must! I started going regularly when a good friend of mine moved there. I fell immediately in love with it—with the colonial neighborhoods, the gas street lanterns, the harbor and the buoy bells . . . it’s just so atmospheric, and walking its streets is like time traveling. Newport became my home away from home, (and briefly, my home) when I met my husband. His family’s been there for generations, so they have deep Newport roots, and their history is tightly interwoven with the city’s. When I decided to try my hand at writing mysteries, I didn’t even hesitate—I knew I wanted Newport as the setting. At first I toyed with the idea of writing a contemporary series, but to be honest, my head and my heart feel more comfortable with historical settings, and a historical “voice” feels more natural to me when I write.

As for research, it’s like being a rabbit in a vegetable garden. The Preservation Society of Newport County, Newport Restoration Foundation, Newport Historical Society have all been a huge help. Newport is all about historical preservation and sharing that information with anyone and everyone interested. There’s so much information available about the city’s history and the Gilded Age in general, in addition to the reams of documents my husband has here at the house. His grandfather dabbled quite a bit in the family’s genealogy, which sheds a lot of light on Newport itself. Plus, he and my father-in-law were accomplished photographers, and we have tons of photos throughout the twentieth century. But my favorite research is simply walking through town, the colonial Point neighborhood, and the Gilded Age mansions. We’re members of the Preservation Society, which means we can come and go as we please without paying the entrance fee. Sometimes if we only have, say, a half hour to spare, we’ll pop into The Breakers or one of the others and just stroll. There’s always something new to see and learn.

You’re such a prolific author, I’m in awe of your ability to slip seamlessly from one series to another, even between historical and contemporary series. Do you ever find yourself in the wrong “head” so to speak when you sit down to write? Which is easier for you to write, historicals or contemporaries, or do you have a preference?  

Edith/Maddie: I don’t find myself slipping. As our good friend Sheila Connolly used to say, the characters are so real in my head, I don’t mix them up. (I hope all the Reds readers have already run out to buy Sheila’s last book, The Secret Staircase!) In terms of era, my contemporary cozies are a little easier to write in a way. As you well know, writing books set in the wayback past bump up the level of research. That said, I love writing historical mysteries and have no intention of stopping. I’m working on an exciting new project set in 1926 Boston. More anon!

You write two historical series in two eras – and in two countries. Do you find yourself needing to double-check language and fashion to make sure you haven’t slipped from post-World War I England back into 1899 Newport? Why did you pick the Gilded Age for the Newport series?

Alyssa: Although I can be something of a scatterbrain at times, I really don’t have trouble keeping my two series separate in my mind. Although they’re both historical, there is a world of difference between them. Society was on the cusp of change during the Gilded Age. Some women (but far from all) were striving to be more than wives and mothers. But it would be another twenty-plus years before women were able to make substantial changes to their lives and their roles in society. In my Lady and Lady’s Maid series, Phoebe and Eva are living through a whirlwind of change. WWI brought a revolution in terms of women’s roles in the workplace, blurred societal and economic lines, and had people seriously questioning the way things had always been done. Although tradition does continue to tug at their lives, there is a much more modern feel to the era than in the Gilded Age. The two periods feel very distinct to me.

So then, why the Gilded Age, you ask? When you think of Newport, those incredible mansions immediately come to mind—besides the colonial era, they are the most visual aspect of Newport’s history. The city is basically synonymous with the Gilded Age, the mansions being a powerful link to this country’s past. For the visitor who only has a day to spend there, the one thing they do is tour The Breakers or one of the other large houses, like Marble House or The Elms. I thought, what fun to open the doors to all the “cottages” and invite readers in, and get to know the houses and the families who owned them. It’s been quite a journey for me, and I’ve grown quite fond of the people I’ve written about.

We are the unrelated Maxwells! But I feel that all mystery authors form one large, extended family. Can you talk about what being part of the mystery writing community has meant to you, both to your personal life and your career?

Edith/Maddie: Oh, my goodness, the crime fiction clan is everything. I have made so many good friends since I attended my first New England Crime Bake back in 2006 and joined Sisters in Crime on the spot. I’ve said many times I wouldn’t be where I am in my publishing career without what I’ve learned and the people I’ve met in SINC, especially the New England community (looking at you, Hallie, Hank, Roberta/Lucy, and Julia). I met all my fabulous Wicked Authors blogmates at meetings and workshops. I found my agent through SINC New England. I can’t wait for the moment when it will be safe to gather in groups again – and to hug my writer friends, all many hundreds of them, you included!

What about you Alyssa? What has gotten you through book releases in the last year and a half, and what part of the author’s life do you most look forward to getting back to?

Alyssa: If you look at the dedication page on my next Lady & Lady’s Maid release, A Deadly Endowment, you see part of the answer—three good friends with whom I stayed in close contact during the lockdown and the worst of the pandemic, mostly through daily texting. We ranted, consoled, encouraged, and it was a huge, huge help. I also took weekends off, as I typically do when not under a tight deadline, and made sure to enjoy downtime time with my husband, whether it was bike riding, walking through some of our parks, or just hanging out at home. I’ve missed seeing my fellow authors, missed conferences, bimonthly critique, monthly meetings, and trips where we would get together, but again, we’ve kept in touch and zoomed regularly. The writing community is strong and close knit, and without a doubt some of the most supportive people I’ve ever known. I’m grateful for my writing friends every day!

Edith/Maddie: Pen names – we both use them. I don’t think you also use your real name for an author name. Do you think you might? Have you had any issues with the URL or other people named Alyssa Maxwell on social media, for example? And…why did you choose that name?

Alyssa: Many moons ago, when I was first published in historical romance, I used my real name! Then I used another pen name, also for historical romance. But having been a closet mystery author all along, when I reinvented myself my publisher asked me to take a whole new name. I guess they didn’t want to confuse readers . . . or someone, lol. If you peek at the copyright page in my current books, you’ll see my real name is Lisa Manuel. I wanted something a bit similar to Lisa, so Alyssa worked. Then I remembered that years ago, my daughter’s school listed her last name as Maxwell. It caused some confusion at the time, but again, Manuel—Maxwell seemed to work, especially if you pronounce Manuel as it should be in Portuguese: Man-well. Although, no one in my husband’s family has pronounced it that way for generations. So there you have it, the story of me! I’ve come to love my pseudonym and answer to Alyssa as easily as I do Lisa.

Even though you also write under Edith, tell readers about your pen name.

Edith/Maddie: Maddie was also born at a publisher’s request. My editor at Kensington had published three volumes of the Local Foods Mysteries when he offered me a contract for the Country Store Mysteries – but only if I would use a pen name. I was stymied. My Edith Maxwell author name was just getting established, and the new series was similarly a cozy foodie mystery. I asked my agent why. His (educated) guess was that the Local Foods books hadn’t sold spectacularly well, and the publisher wanted me to appear as a new author to readers. Well, something about that worked. The books I write as Maddie Day DO sell like proverbial hotcakes. No Grater Crime is book #9, I have a contract through #11 (plus a Christmas novella), and my editor has said he’s happy to publish them “indefinitely.”

Alas, I didn’t do the best job of picking a name. Other Maddie Days were already out there, and my URL and social media handles have to be @MaddieDayAuthor. Still, it’s a wide-open secret that I am both authors, and I cross-promote accordingly.

Readers: If you like an author in one of her series, will you cross eras and settings to read another set of stories by the same person? Ask us questions! We are each giving away a copy of our new book.

 

Murder at Wakehurst Blurb:

In the autumnal chill of Newport, Rhode Island, at the close of the nineteenth century, journalist Emma Cross discovers an instance of cold-blooded murder on the grounds of a mansion...

Following the death of her uncle, Cornelius Vanderbilt, in September 1899, a somber Emma is in no mood for one of Newport's extravagant parties. But to keep Vanderbilt's reckless son Neily out of trouble, she agrees to accompany him to an Elizabethan fete on the lavish grounds of Wakehurst, the Ochre Point "cottage" modeled after an English palace, owned by Anglophile James Van Alen.

Held in Wakehurst's English-style gardens, the festivities will include a swordplay demonstration, an archery competition, scenes from Shakespeare's plays, and even a joust. As Emma wanders the grounds distracted by grief, she overhears a fierce argument between a man and a woman behind a tall hedge. As the joust begins, she's drawn by the barking of Van Alen's dogs and finds a man on the ground, an arrow through his chest.

The victim is one of the 400's most influential members, Judge Clayton Schuyler. Could one of the countless criminals he'd imprisoned over the years have returned to seek revenge--or could one of his own family members have targeted him? With the help of her beau Derrick Andrews and Detective Jesse Whyte, Emma begins to learn the judge was not the straight arrow he appeared to be. As their investigation leads them in ever-widening circles, Emma will have to score a bull's eye to stop the killer from taking another life...

No Grater Crime blurb:

Robbie Jordan’s Pans ’N Pancakes boasts delicious eats and the best vintage cookware finds in South Lick, Indiana. And now, for a limited time, there’s a new special featured on the menu—murder!
 
Ever since meeting the wary owners of an antique shop opening across the street, Robbie has been scrambling to manage weird incidences plaguing her café and country store. Pricey items vanish from shelves without explanation, a fully equipped breakfast food truck starts lingering around the area each morning, and loyal diners mysteriously fall ill. When an elderly man dies after devouring an omelet packed with poisonous mushrooms, Robbie must temporarily close down Pans ’N Pancakes and search for the killer with a real zest for running her out of business—or else.  

Alyssa Maxwell, author of The Gilded Newport Mysteries and A Lady and Lady's Maid Mysteries, knew from an early age that she wanted to be a writer. Growing up in New England and traveling to Great Britain fueled a passion for history, while a love of puzzles of all kinds drew her to the mystery genre. She and her husband reside in Florida, where they love to ride their bikes, and shop at farmer’s markets and go antiquing. Alyssa also loves to watch BBC productions, sip tea in the afternoons, and delve into the past. She is a member of her local chapter of the Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and the Florida Romance Writers. You can learn more about Alyssa and her books at www.alyssamaxwell.com, and connect with her at:

https://www.facebook.com/gildednewport

https://www.facebook.com/AlyssaMaxwellauthor/

https://twitter.com/Alyssa__Maxwell

https://www.pinterest.com/alymaxauthor/

https://www.instagram.com/alyssamaxwellauthor/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7163135.Alyssa_Maxwell

 

Maddie Day pens the bestselling Country Store Mysteries and Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries. As Edith Maxwell, she writes the Agatha Award-winning Quaker Midwife Mysteries and short crime fiction. She’s a lifetime member of Sisters in Crime and a member of Mystery Writers of America, and lives north of Boston with her beau and crazy teenage cat, Ganesh. If you’d like an autographed copy of any of her books, please order it from Jabberwocky Books and she’ll run over and sign a copy for you. It’s also available wherever else books are sold, including here.

Find her (and Maddie) at her web site, at Wicked Authors, at Mystery Lovers Kitchen on the second and fourth Fridays, and on social media under both names.

Facebook:

Edith M. Maxwell and Maddie Day Author

Instagram:

Edith Maxwell and Maddie Day Author

Twitter:

Edith Maxwell and Maddie Day Author

 

DEBS: These two make my head spin with all their different identities, but I think it's great! Readers, do you follow your favorite authors from one pseudonym to another?