Interview with Author Kathleen Marple Kalb

 

Kathleen Marple Kalb describes herself as an Author/Anchor/Mom…not in that order. An award-winning weekend anchor at New York’s 1010 WINS Radio, she writes short stories and novels including The Stuff of Murder, and the upcoming Ella Shane mystery, A Fatal Reception, both from Level Best Books. As Nikki Knight, she writes the Grace the Hit Mom and Vermont Radio mysteries. Her stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Weekly, and others, and been short-listed for Derringer and Black Orchid Novella Awards. She’s currently the Vice President of the Short Mystery Fiction Society and a co-VP of the New York/Tri-State Chapter of Sisters in Crime. She, her husband, and son live in a Connecticut house owned by their cat.

Question: What is the title and genre of your novel?  Why did you select them?

Answer: THE STUFF OF MURDER, modern cozy mystery, first in the Old Stuff series. The main character, Christian Shaw, is an expert in 18^th and 19^th century household goods – old stuff. I’ve been a series mystery girl since I borrowed my grandpa’s Agatha Christie’s!

Question:   What inspired this novel? How did it come about?

Answer: My first published series is the Ella Shane historical mysteries, set in Gilded Age New York. There was a lot of social history/daily life research that didn’t make it into the books, and I started thinking about what the things we use say about us…or how objects might be used in solving a crime. That gave me the idea for this series: old stuff – everything from tankards to bibles to bayonets – helps in the solution.  

Question:  Could you tell us a little bit about the heroine and/or hero of your novel? 

Answer: Christian Shaw is a former history professor and current director of the Unity, Connecticut Historical Society, where she runs a small museum and has a nice little side hustle consulting on movies and TV shows. She’s also the widowed single mother of Henry Glaser, a feisty eight-year-old with a photographic memory and Type-1 Diabetes.

Question:   Can you tell us about some of your other published novels or work?

Answer: My first series is the Ella Shane Mysteries – starting at Kensington, and resuming next April at Level Best Books – featuring an opera singer who plays male soprano roles and challenges expectations in 1900 New York. As Nikki Knight, I also write contemporary mysteries and short stories featuring Vermont DJ Jaye Jordan and Grace the Hit Mom.

 Question:   What are you working on now? 

Answer: A massive revision of THE STUFF OF MAYHEM, the second Old Stuff Mystery. This is the kind of thing I can only say to a fellow writer: I killed the wrong person!

Question:   What made you start writing?

Answer: (Sheepish shrug) I don’t honestly REMEMBER not writing! I probably started in middle school, and by the time I was sixteen I was banging out my first novel on an electric typewriter. I’ve always loved telling stories, escaping to some interesting place with lovable people, and making everything come out right. As for serious professional writing, that came after my son started kindergarten, and I decided to try my hand at writing and selling a mystery.

Question:   What advice would you offer to those who are currently writing novels?

Answer: Keep at it. Don’t take rejection as anything other than “No, today” on one piece of work, and don’t assume everyone knows better than you do. If you’re getting good edits and learning from them, being professional in your presentation, and casting a wide net for opportunities, it WILL happen. 

Question:  Where and when will readers be able to obtain your novel? 

Answer: (Buy Links) THE STUFF OF MURDER is out now from Level Best Books: The Stuff of Murder: An Old Stuff Mystery a book by Kathleen Marple Kalb (bookshop.org)

Comments and or questions for Kathleen welcome here.