JENN McKINLAY: Browsing the bookstore shelves the other day, I noticed how many books now feature sports/athletes. I know our Lucy had a golf themed mystery series and I had professional football players in my recent release Fondant Fumble, and I think that’s it for the Reds–please correct me if I’m wrong. Personally, I like having sports included in my fiction because sports fandom is such a way of life for so many people. But I’m wondering how do the Reds feel about it? Do you include sports, athletes, or sports fans in your books or nah?
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Well,: my first answer was nah. But does horse racing count? Horse racing is cool. And oh, anything equestrian, actually. I’m trying to think about what other sports I’ve loved in books. Hockey, actually, in a couple of books. (And I am not a big fan in real life.) Oh, baseball. Baseball is fine, too. And so agree, sports is instant conflict, and instant romcom fodder, too. So, okay, not nah.
JENN: LOL, Hank.
DEBORAH CROMBIE: Oh, rowing! I am the most un-sporty person in the world but I decided I wanted to write a book about rowing and I became obsessed with it. I read rowing, I watched rowing, I even got to row on the Thames at Henley and stayed at Leander Club where the book is set. And I still love that book, No Mark Upon Her, which is definitely in the running for my favorite book in the series. Now wondering what other sport I might write about… Soccer (football!) I pretty much get, but cricket remains a mystery.
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| BBC -- Rowing: How the 8 works |
JENN: My brother was captain of our high school crew team - regattas are ridiculously exciting!
RHYS BOWEN: Apart from Dick Francis I can’t think of any books I’ve read that feature sport, nor any books I’ve written. Actually that’s wrong. Constable Evans played rugby and in one book was asked to turn pro. But more recently? That’s a disadvantage of writing historical. Young ladies only played a genteel game of tennis or croquet. But this has inspired me to write one. I’ve always been a tennis nut. A murder at the tennis club?
Oh, just remembered. In Farleigh Field starts with a cricket game!
JENN: Debs has some questions about cricket, Rhys!
HALLIE EPHRON: My Dr. Peter Zak novels featured a protagonist who’s a rower. Lots of scenes set on the Charles and at Charles River boat house, or exercising on an ergonometer, or running along the banks of the Charles. I do not row OR run, but my coauthor does and the main character is based on him. Since? Nope. No running no rowing. There’s a little golf (an a-hole who practice putts into a marsh.) But sure… sports in a mystery… why not!?
(But I’d have to do some research that I probably wouldn’t relish doing.)
JENN: I loathe people who hit golf balls into bodies of water. We have one a-hole from TX who does that on our beach in Nova Scotia. Maddening!
LUCY BURDETTE: Yes, my golf lovers mystery series was my first foray into writing. I was obsessed with learning to play, and yearning to be good at the game, and I channeled all of that into Cassie. As it turned out, that was bad timing. Sports were not hot with fiction readers! Now our JRW pal Elise Hart Kipness is writing a wonderful series based on her experience as a sports reporter (we’ve had her visit twice), and it’s very popular.
So, have readers’ opinions really changed or is this another example of the fickle cycle of the publishing industry deciding that’s what we want? Who the heck knows??
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I remember going through a BIG sports-centered romance phase in my thirties. Suzanne Elizabeth Phillips had a whole series about smart, alpha football players and the even slater women who tamed them. Loved it, and that genre is definitely coming back, according to my dive into the USA Today best sellers list.
There are no professional teams near Millers Kill other than racing at Saratoga (hmm… I must make a note to think about that.) Instead, I include references to the sports ordinary people play and the activities they pursue. So we see Clare briefly skiing cross country, and Russ ice fishing. There are reference to Russ playing basketball in high school, and Officer Hadley Knox’s son is on his middle school cross country team. That’s about it.
But what if some wealthy sport bought a defunct farm near Millers Kill for his racing stable, and someone got murdered… brb, going to start researching the Travers Stakes.
JENN: Lots of appreciation for horse racing! I vote yes!
How about it, Readers? Do you like athletes or sports featured or even mentioned in your fiction?
I don't feel strongly about this one way or the other . . . as long as I don't have to play, it's all good :)
ReplyDeleteI feel like that may be one reason why novels tend to dabble in sports rather than go all in (with exceptions like Dick Francis and Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar series.) The Venn diagram of "enthusiastic sports fan" and "Enthusiastic reader" would have a narrow overlap.
DeleteLOL. I feel that especially if it's a sport that scares me - high diving comes to mind.
DeleteNicole Asselin has a whole series focused on a fictionalized Red Sox. I have cycling in two of my series, but not racing. Annette Dashofy has horses in her Zoe Chambers series and racing in her award-winning Death by Equine.
ReplyDeleteAs for historical, Rhys, it was very freeing for women in the late nineteenth century to begin bicycling, which included split skirts, shorter hems, and looser corsets.
But thanks for the reminder to include local sports watching, at least. I need to work in some Sox/Patriots/Bruins/Celtics-watching in my Cape Cod series!
Ooh, I just remembered Barb Goffman's short story collection that came out last month, THREE STRIKES - YOU'RE DEAD!, which includes short crime fiction involving baseball, biathlon, boxing, cycling, figure skating, swimming, tennis, ultimate frisbee, and more!
DeleteEdith, I do like to see characters interacting with sports on TV or in real life. It would be hard to find anyone in New England who doesn't at least have a passing acquaintance with the teams you mentioned!
DeleteI still remember what a Rangers fan Stephanie Plum was in Evanovich's mysteries.
DeleteGood question, Jenn! There are dozens of romance writers who center whole series around sports teams, each book featuring a different hero. Pippa Grant is an absolutely hilarious author of several sports themed series with baseball and hockey players. I found her last winter just when I most needed the distraction of silly, sexy romances. As she proudly declares, "You don't read me for the realism." LOL! There aren't many serious stories that I have read with sports heroes, but Jenn, Harrison and his mates play rugby, right?
ReplyDeleteDebs, I adored No Mark Upon Her, not just for the rowing. That sub-series in the Gemma/Duncan series is so full of intrigue and suspense. Best ever!!
I love Annette's Death By Equine.
So there's a deeper question, right, Judy? Why have romance writers embraced the sports story whole-heartedly, and why haven't mystery/thriller authors done the same?
DeleteI think that having a "stable" of hunky he-men is a good trope for romances and not necessary for mysteries. At least 5,000 words to describe his muscles, to say how it feels to touch those muscles, to have him lift you up and...you get the picture
Delete(I'm laughing here...)
DeleteLOL, Judy, and I think hockey broke the ice (intended) of the whole trend. Weirdly.
DeleteI have one of Lucy's golf mystery books and both of Nicole Asselin's Abington Armadillos baseball mysteries. But beyond that I'm not sure if I've read anything where sports were the central theme in the cozy genre. (Barring a brain cramp and memory fail that is)
ReplyDeleteI would read stuff like that if I found the story interesting so it kind of depends on the sport and how much I like the whodunnit aspect of the plot as well. Cricket, no thank you. Basketball, football, baseball...heck yeah.
Jay, I think cricket could be a very funny addition to a mystery, if part of the plot was the American sleuth being continually baffled by how the @#$% thing works.
DeleteReading the rules for cricket is an insomnia cure (sorry, cricket fans!)
DeleteWell, Dick Francis did such a good job, maybe it was intimidating to add sports to mysteries for a long time.
ReplyDeleteA traveling team, including baseball, football, basketball, horse racing, or rodeo could be a perfect venue for an amateur sleuth. That would be fun.
I think we need a WNBA series!
DeleteCaitlin Clark as sleuth!
DeleteOoo, rodeo. Lots of opportunities for mayhem there.
DeleteI love all of these ideas. Also, in baseball, the sleuth has at least three days to solve the crime.
DeleteI liked Tammy Kaehler's Kate Reilly mysteries which had a female race car driver as the amateur sleuth. The last book in the 5 book series was published in 2017. And I was a big fan of Harlen Coben's earlier Myron Bolitar books which focused more on the sports agent-athlete relationship.
ReplyDeleteGrace, I agree with you on the Myron Bolitar books. They didn't saturate you with sports, but the definitely could educate you in areas most of us don't venture. His latest Myron Bolitar book brought me to tears. Even though there wasn't much that was sports related, it still defined a significant part of his life history. -- Victoria
DeleteOf course! I'd forgotten about Harlan Coben's series. Of course he can write about anything and I"m in.
DeleteI was going to say Brad Parks' Carter Ross series, but then I remembered Carter Ross was an investigative reporter - it was Brad himself who started out as a sports journalist. BTW, for those of us who have missed his thrillers, he has a new one coming out in November - THE BOUNDARIES WE CROSS.
DeleteOh, I loved Tammy Kaehler's Kate Reilly books!
DeleteI loved Myron Bolitar - I always wanted more about Win! Tammy race car books are fabulous!
DeleteDoes people watching sports count, I was just wondering? It’s a different thing to be watching the sport them to be playing, a sport, obviously, and I often allude to people who were watching the Red Sox, or wearing Red Sox paraphernalia, or talking about the Celtics. It is a quick shorthand for a location, and good for a clue, too. And certainly a “ratty faded Red Sox T-shirt. “is a different image than a “tight, hot pink, Red Sox T-shirt.” This is such a fun topic, Jenn !
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this post, I just wrote in a bar full of folks in Pats jerseys happening as my characters have brunch in the restaurant, and which of my group are fans. Now I need to add a tight, vee-necked, red Pats shirt on somebody who walks by!
DeleteEdith, if you need conflict in the scene, add patrons in the paraphernalia of the opposing team!
DeleteThat can lead to fistfights in Massachusetts, Karen!
DeleteJulia, do they have bobsled sports in Mills Neck?
DeleteOr ice sailing races, Anon!
DeleteA Yankee fan walked into a Red Sox Nation bar...oh, dear, lots of conflict and a fight, fo sho!
DeleteSports are like romance - it's a splash of real life. I've made references to Pittsburgh sports teams in The Laurel Highlands Mysteries. Even set a short story at a fictional independent-league team ("Batter Down" in the LUCKY CHARMS anthology from the Mary Roberts Rinehart SinC chapter). I think I've even made references to the Buffalo sports teams of the time in the Homefront Mysteries.
ReplyDeleteBut I've never written a mystery completely around a sport, although I could probably do baseball or hockey without a ton of research.
I feel like it's such a part of American culture even non sports fans are aware.
DeleteI do enjoy sports in real life and in books. I loved No Mark Upon Her, Debs and all the details about rowing. Bonnie Garmus' Lessons in Chemistry also has a rowing theme--in some ways it sounds like a brutal sport! I also remember Playing for the Ashes by Elizabeth George (cricket player was murdered) and Brush Back by Sara Paretsky (we got to find out some of the secrets of Wrigley Field). I know it's not a mystery, but I recently read Horse by Geraldine Brooks. For all the horse racing enthusiasts, it's a wonderful story about a Civil War era racehorse, who just might have been the greatest horse ever.
ReplyDeleteOh, thanks Gillian. I love a good horse story!
DeleteRowing IS brutal. I think part of what makes it so fascinating is that it looks so beautiful and graceful in contrast to the actuality of it.
Deletethanks for the horse story rec!
As Liz noted, a splash of sports in a book reflects life, and as Jay pointed out, a sports-themed mystery is fine, too, as long as the whodunit part isn't slighted in favor of the sport. I wouldn't pick up a book because of a sports theme, though.
ReplyDeleteGood point. It's all about balance.
DeleteI was surprised, when I stopped to think about it, that there aren't more sports in mysteries. They seem such an integral part of the fabric of society, at least here in the U.S. Actually, all around the world, I believe -- just different sports.
ReplyDeleteWhen hubby and I were in England for the first time last year, we sat down in our first pub for our first beer and there were signs touting specials tied to "RWC." So my husband, ever inquisitive, asked what RWC meant. I will never forget the look the bartender gave my husband -- something akin to "What rock did you just crawl out from under?" It was the Rugby World Cup. At that point England and Ireland were still alive in the competition and as we learned over the coming days, everyone was following it and poured into pubs to watch the games. But for Americans, it wasn't even on our radar. That's the kind of scene that would feel very natural in a mystery!
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DeleteAs a totally non-sport person, I enjoy mysteries precisely because they rarely have sport jargon or events in them.
DeleteWhen we were in Warsaw in April there was a matchup of two rival teams--soccer/football? I think. Team jerseys were everywhere, and there was a huge contingent of police roaming around, with their patrol cars blocking access to Old Town, near where we were staying. Steve's cousin's partner is a Warsaw cop, and he said they were on the lookout for "hooligans", and anyone trying to deface a famous statue in the square. Apparently, that is a tradition.
Were Jenn's sons traveling in Europe, by any chance? ;^)
DeleteHa! I never thought of that. Apparently, there is an actual classification of troublemakers called hooligans!
DeleteMy European readers always tell me that calling my sons "Hooligans" is harsh. I suppose in England they would be called "Scamps".
DeleteYes, "hooligans" in the UK are not cute! They are the guys who start brawls at soccer matches.
DeleteI can't think of any books other than Lucy's golf series - which I've read and liked. But there are hundreds of Hollywood movies about sports that come to mind that have been very popular over the years: rowing, baseball, soccer, football, bicycling, women's softball, etc. I think it is far more exciting to watch sports than to read about them.
ReplyDeleteTrue. It's that whole mirror neuron thing in our brains that fires when we do something (throw a ball or whatever) or watch someone else throw a ball. Same brain response.
DeleteI am reminded of Stephen King's book, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. It was a clever way to include sports into a novel. Also, Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar books when he was a sports agent were interesting. Not too much, but just enough to make the plot more interesting. I certainly learned a lot about sports agents, contracts and such. Also, Dick and Felix Francis's books are fascinating to me as I know little of the sport in England.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that means that as long as it educates me and adds interest to the book, I'm in. That is one of the reasons I was intrigued to see Jenn introduce football players into Fondant Fumble. It adds a new dimension to the series and opens up lots of possibilities for future books. Bring it on, just don't drown me in the sport. -- Victoria
Thank you, Victoria! We'll see if the guys pop up in another mystery!
DeleteThis is going to be a long comment!
ReplyDeleteAs a child before going to that horrid school for four years, I LOVED sports. I was always up for playing baseball at school.
There often was sports in the Nancy Drew mysteries, I seem to recall that her friend George was the athlete while her cousin Bess was not into sports. And I think Nancy Drew excelled in tennis. She seemed to excel at everything!
Dick Francis had horse racing and he is a family favorite. I loved No Mark on Her, a Gemma and Duncan mystery with a rower in the 2012 London Olympics by Deborah Crombie.
Trying to recall if there was any cozy mystery with an equestrian? I think maybe there was a Nancy Drew mystery about an equestrian. I think maybe Midsomer Murders had an episode with an equestrian? There were several episodes about cricket. When I was living in England, I think I offended Barbara Cartland’s daughter when I asked her if Cricket was like baseball. Cricket is a mystery to me, though Midsomer Murders showed me a bit more about cricket 20 years later after I asked about cricket. LOL
Agatha Christie mysteries had some stories about golfing. I definitely will check out the JRW books with sports.
Aren't cricket games insanely long? I think I remember reading a Vanity Fair piece about cricket and thinking baseball is long enough, thanks.
DeleteThinking way back now, wasn't Linda Barnes's Carlotta Carlyle a volleyball player? Not pro sports, but sports.
ReplyDeleteYes! She was quite tall, as I recall.
DeleteOh, I love it. I'll have to check it out!
DeletePat D: I've read a number of romcoms that feature athletes and I thoroughly enjoyed them! Especially when I learn new things about rugby for instance.
ReplyDeletePat, see my answer to Julia about muscles being such an important part of romance heroes' assets!
DeleteRugby is such a great sport. I have no idea why it's not more popular in the States.
DeleteI'm not a big sports person, so it's not something I'd necessarily seek out. But it can be a fun setting/addition to a book.
ReplyDeleteThat's how I feel, too.
DeleteSports are a part of life and should definitely be included when they fit in with the characters, setting, and plot. It's fun for me as a reader to learn more about sports I don't know much about through my reading. I did recently read a book that was about pickleball in a retirement community. It wasn't that great of a book, but I can see that exploding just like the sport has done.
ReplyDeleteHank, you must come to Ocala, Florida and visit the World Equestrian Center. We just moved here and have been hearing a lot about it. Apparently you can watch many of the equestrian events for free but the shops etc. that are there are rather swanky. So far we have just driven by it. Ocala is the Horse Capital of the World. Research for a new book perhaps or on book tour.
Oh, road trip! Thank you, Brenda!
DeleteThe more authors I can get to come here to Ocala the happier I will be. Hardly ever got any other than locals in Rochester, MN.
DeleteShoot forgot to enter my name on the above anon post.
ReplyDeleteBrenda, hope you’re getting settled in okay. — Pat S
DeleteThank you Pat. We are about as settled as we can be for now. We are in a furnished rental with our stuff in storage until our house is finished. Supposed to close Dec. 4th. We've been getting acclimated to On Top of the World which is our 55+ Active Adult Community here in Ocala. Much smaller and more to our liking than The Villages, but still with plenty to do. The area is far enough inland that Hurricane Helene and others like her are not a huge problem. Glad of that as we basically followed Helene here. Hearts go out to the devastated areas for sure.
DeleteI love baseball, (American) football, water polo and am learning more about ice hockey and soccer. I admit to not understanding cricket at all. When I walk my dog and there are men playing cricket in the park , I am enthralled watching them play. The dog is fortunately attached to me by his leash because I completely ignore him while trying to figure out the game!
ReplyDeleteAs far as sports in mysteries, why not? I don’t know if I would choose a book by the sport being featured, but I wouldn’t avoid it either. Nowadays, with so many authors I enjoy, I tend to seek my books by who wrote them than by the details of the mystery. — Pat S
I'm an author first person as well, Pat!
DeleteThanks for the mention Lucy!! As someone writing about a sports reporter covering murder at sporting events, I did a bit of a deep dive into comps and noticed a bit of a recent trend showing more sports based mysteries by female writers. In addition to the ones already mentioned (like Nicole Asselin) there's SHIVER and SWELL by Allie Reynolds, HOME OR AWAY by Kathleen West and APPLES NEVER FALL by Lianne Moriatity. Not to mention, all the recent hockey romances that all of you mentioned.
ReplyDeleteHi, Elise. I just bought APPLES NEVER FALL. Had no idea there were sports in it. LOL. I love that women are stepping into sports - in all aspects - we have so many knowledgeable female sportscasters these days - I love it!
DeleteI love how so many of your responses changed as you remember use of sports within books you have enjoyed or even wrote!
ReplyDeleteBased on what I have witnessed about Fantasy Football, I think it would be an obvious source of many murders.
LOL!!! Hub has been mourning his picks all week. There's definitely a plot there waiting to be written.
DeleteI am not sporty at all, although in my "poor student days" I did go to a couple of hose races with dates and really liked them. I can appreciate golf or tennis (as a watcher), but still am not yet into American football, baseball or soccer, which is really big here in Portugal. My husband grew up playing soccer in his neighborhood and at school in India, but, even though we have moved, he's totally entranced with American football. Whereas, a grandnephew (in a visit to India), told me, when he was twelve, "Oh, auntie, Cricket is my LIFE!"
ReplyDeleteI don't write sports into my stories, or even read with those in mind. But I was taken by surprise and enthralled by The Legend of Bagger Vance by Steven Pressfield - theoretically about a golf game but oh, so much more.
It's funny how sports is such a personal thing. There's just no understanding how people pick their favorite teams beyond the home team connection - at least to me. Maybe your grandnephew can explain cricket to us!
DeleteI think sports are just integral to our world these days. Think about the Olympics for example, even breakdance was considered a sport. Whether it is peripheral or integral to the story, I would likely read it and I am not a huge fan of any sport. That said, keeping up with local sports teams a bit does help ease conversations with most people!
ReplyDeleteSo true. You can always muster up some conversation beyond how's the weather if you ask about the local teams.
DeleteYou guys!!!! Sports in mysteries is my jam! (No literally...as Edith, Jay, and Elise mentioned, I write the Ballpark Mysteries). As a HUGE Red Sox fan up here in New England, I despaired that there weren't many sports themed, women led mysteries. That inspired me to write mine! Sports, especially these days, hits all kinds of ages, genders, identities, social status, etc that I think is great in mysteries!
ReplyDeletePlus, I know I'm not alone in my rabid fandom. Plus, you have an almost unlimited vicitm/murder pool. After writing two deaths at my fake home ballpark, I let my character travel to another ballpark for the next book. Lots of people in and out, plus family dynamics.
And, Elise's series is my new favorite. I love a strong women led book with a dash of sports. So read those too! Then we can keep writing them!
-Nicole