Mystery Author of the Month: Cindy Sample

Author, Cindy Sample

Cindy Sample is the Mystery Author of the Month. I'm a big fan of her very humorous Laurel McKay mystery series. I've read all of her books to date and I'm looking forward to the next one.

Patricia: Cindy, when did you know that you wanted to be a writer?

Cindy: When I was in the third grade, I took my spelling assignment and turned it into Nancy Drew and the Haunted Mansion. It was sixteen pages long and the teacher gave me an A+. I knew that day that I wanted to be a mystery author when I grew up. I just didn’t expect it to take a half a century before my next literary masterpiece was released.

Patricia: Wow! That sounds a lot like my career path. The first thing I had published was a poem in my Sunday school magazine when I was ten years old and, like you, it was half a century before my first mystery novel was published. Have you ever considered this? If, for some reason, you couldn’t be a writer, what profession would you choose?

Cindy: Since I’m as klutzy as my protagonist, I would never make it as a police detective although I love being an armchair detective. With a background in the mortgage industry, I think it would be fun to become a forensic accountant. Probably not most people’s choice of a fun career, but it would be intriguing to sift through the numbers and discover fraud. My second passion would be to become a chocolate taster. Preferably in Belgium.

Patricia: I’ll admit I can’t relate to the forensic accountant job (I’m terrible at math) but the chocolate taster position appeals to me too. So, tell us, do you have a bucket list, things you still want to do and/or places you want to visit?

Cindy: I have a very long bucket list including multiple stories I want to share with the world either in book form or screenplays. I’ve traveled a fair amount, but I still want to visit South America, New Zealand and as much of Asia as possible. And I’d like to write and produce a Broadway musical. It’s my bucket list, so why not? I guess I should add “win Powerball” to my bucket list!

Patricia: Interesting. Win Powerball is on my bucket list too. :)

Cindy Sample is a former corporate CEO who decided plotting murder was more entertaining than plodding through paperwork. Her national bestselling mystery series, described as Erma Bombeck meets Agatha Christie, features single soccer mom, Laurel McKay. The series, set in the California Gold Country, includes Dying for a Date, Dying for a Dance, Dying for a Daiquiri, Dying for a Dude and Dying for a Donut. Cindy is a four-time nominee for the LEFTY Award for Best Humorous Mystery and winner of the NCPA Best Fiction Award. Cindy describes Dying for a Donut as a lip-smacking mystery. It definitely involved the most dangerous research! 

 

Overview of the series: 

Laurel McKay is a multi-tasking mocha-drinking single mom whose size nine feet manage to stumble over one dead body after another. Whether she’s at her office at Hangtown Bank, located in the Gold Country of Northern California, or on vacation in Hawaii or the Caribbean, Laurel’s life is never dull.

Although her initial encounter with Detective Tom Hunter, AKA Detective Hunk, was less than amicable due to her being his # 1 suspect in Dying for a Date, their romance has slowly progressed from simmering to sizzling.

Check out Laurel’s humorous and chocolate-filled adventures, but beware - you may die laughing.

"Once again Sample presents a very entertaining mystery featuring a relatable and likable heroine. The family interactions with the McKay women are a delight, as their love for one another always overrides their frustrations. The characters are the reason readers will return to this series, and the twisty plot surprises and fun dialogue will engage new fans."
-Cynthia Chow, Kings River Life Magazine

To learn more about Cindy and her books:  

Visit her author’s page:

https://www.amazon.com/Cindy-Sample/e/B003RXILIK/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1470779674&sr=8-1

Her website: 

http://cindysamplebooks.com/ 

And her newsletter subscriber page:

http://cindysamplebooks.com/mailing-list/

www.facebook.com/cindysampleauthor 

www.twitter.com/cindysample1 

DYING FOR A DIAMOND will be released in January, 2017.

Cindy is giving away a $10 Starbucks giftcard to someone who leaves a comment on this post. The winner will be announced Saturday.