Latest Cozy Mystery Series from Author Julie B. Cosgrove

 Good morning all you Diamonds in Fiction fans. This week I want to again introduce you to one of my favorite authors in the whole world—JULIE COSGROVE!!!!

 Besides being good friends, I am a super fan of this talented and magnificent author!

Julie, I’m delighted to be able to feature today not only you, but the first book of your latest cozy mystery series WORD HAS IT! From the first sentence I knew this was the crème de la crème I’d been waiting for. Welcome to the Diamond Mine dear friend!

 Aww, thanks. I am blushing now. Can you believe this is fiction work #16??  I was first published in 2010, so I feel very blessed to have landed so many contracts.

 For those of you who don’t know, Julie is a multi-dimensional author, a kaleidoscope of genres, many award-winning!  She writes devotionals, cozy mysteries, has written three suspense novels on human trafficking, as well as Bible studies, and…well, Julie give our readers the cliff-note trip through your writing successes.

 I first wrote Focused in 2008, which was a romance of a different sort. It is about an empty nest couple who have drifted apart. Throughout the course f the book, they find out why they fell in love to begin with by focusing on the good things. and it was picked up in 2010. Then after reading Richard Maas’ book on to how to write a breakout novel, I decided in 2009 to write a suspense romance, Hush in the Storm. But by the third chapter I hit a wall and prayed on it. I wanted to convey a message, but what?? Over the next month, three different Spirit-led scenarios introduced me to the plight of human trafficking (at the time it was not a household word). The plot about a young widow who begins to discover her husband’s accident was not that at all began to quickly emerge. I got several nibbles but no bites from agents and publishers. Then I read an advertisement about Prism Books expanding into suspense romance and accepting queries. Within 48 hours I was under contract!

The editor in chief then contracted me to write two sequels, then three romance novellas over the next three years, and after that the four-book series called the Bunco Biddies Mysteries between 2015-2018. The Bunco Biddies novels are set in a 55 plus community and features 12 senior women who share recipes, play dice games, and solve a few crimes along the way. They are light-hearted but each features a social awareness issue, as do all my fictional works. I want to entertain but also hope my readers leave with knowledge of ways they can act, pray, and support nonprofit organizations that help people in tough situations. Jesus always met people in the middle of their messes and I believe we are called to follow in His footsteps.

Anyway, Prism was sold to a larger publishing house, so I decide to contract with a new publisher, Write Integrity Press, whose editor-in-chief I’d met through American Christian Fiction Writers. At her request, I wrote three new cozy mysteries (my genre of choice to read and write) under the Relatively Seeking Mysteries―One Leaf Too Many, Fallen Leaf, and Leaf Me Alone. These featured three thirty-something friends who delve into genealogies and discover family secrets some don’t want revealed. They were written following the Hallmark formula, which is so popular.

But my heart remained with senior sleuths, so Write Integrity Press approved and contracted six books in the Wordplay Mysteries. Word Has It is the first one. Books two and three are in various stages of editing and I am starting to write book four.

 I’d love to pick a favorite, but I’d be here all day arguing with myself …I love them all! It’s amazing how God has guided you every step of the way through your writing career. Can you share a little about how you started writing and how you’ve arrived at this latest series?

 I began writing as a freelance writer because my late husband was transferred a lot in his career in structural construction. Therefore, whenever I had access to the internet I could work. I also contracted to write devotionals for several publications and did so for ten years. I still have a devotional blog, https://wheredidyoufindgodtoday, which has a good following in about 50 countries, and for five years (2015-2020) I wrote and edited for a digitally-based missionary group out of Canada, a division of CRU.

But fiction has always been my secret passion so I gave it a try. A professor friend of my sister’s read Focused and said I had potential but needed to hone my craft. I spent the next few years attending writer’s workshops and conferences, and also reading “how to write faith-based fiction” books. Like most newbie writers, I wrote many drafts during those early years until a publisher picked me up. 

I have always loved mysteries, and after I wrote the suspense and romances for Prism, my sister asked me why I didn’t write what I loved. Prism had never published that genre but gave me a shot with Dumpster Dicing, the first Bunco Biddies Mystery. It won Best Cozy Mystery in Texas 2017, and by then I had been contracted to write the rest in the series. I have been writing cozies ever since.

 In the early writing days, I was always advised, don’t change genres. Those established writers, “Each time you change genres it’s like beginning to build your fan base again.” Any truth to that statement?

 There is some truth to that. But in actuality, I have more migrated than switched. With Prism, I wrote romance, even though some of it was suspense.  The leap from suspense to mystery is not a huge one, and I include a flavoring of romance in the mysteries to add depth to my plots and characters. 

I think it would be hard to, for example, write historical romances and then switch to sci-fi or fantasy. Genres that far apart rarely have carry-over audiences. I do know some mystery writers who write various genres under several pen names, though. Still, it take a lot of marketing efforts to keep your name in front of so many audiences.

 And can I gather that cozy mysteries are your favorite genre?

 Without a doubt. I feel I have found my niche so I plan to keep writing them. If I am not writing them, I am reading them or watching them, especially the British series. I don’t mind reading historical novels and Biblically based ones, and a few YA’s (there, now I have confessed that!) but as a widow in her late sixties, romances just do not hit my hot button like suspense and mysteries. I prefer cozies because they are clean, have fun, quirky characters you get to know and love, and concentrate on solving the crime rather than committing the crime itself.

For those new Diamond Mine followers, can you share just a few words about how God called you to write? Did you always know you were meant to write?

 Three friends from three different states suggested I try writing for a living. They said my articles for church newsletters and even my personal letters showed a propensity for creative writing. I had taken that in school and excelled at it, winning a few awards. I prayed on it and felt somewhat confident God was leading me this way.

Now, I know the Holy Spirit “sits on my shoulders” when I get in my writing zone. Still working full-time, I must carve out writing time on weekends. I get antsy when I feel that prompting in my soul. My family understands when that happens, I am not available unless it is an emergency. Often times, I’ll sit down at the computer with a cuppa in the morning and then look up, astonished that it is after supper time. I am a panster, which means I have a vague idea of the overall plot but create the twists and turns as I go.

As I write, I marvel at where the Spirit leads me. Unraveling the mystery along with my main character is so much fun. I wouldn’t write any other way. By God’s merciful grace, the plot seems to always resolve, red herrings and all. That is when I know I have been steadily in His will.

 I’m sure we have many visiting the Diamond Mine today who are familiar with your work but haven’t heard from you recently. It’s obvious you survived the winter Texas storm of 2021, how rough was that storm in Ft. Worth?

 Not bad in my neck of the woods. Other than seven inches of ice and snow layered upon each other, we never lost power or water. I was able to work remotely the whole time. Others in Fort Worth were not as lucky, but all I know survived and that is a blessing.

 And now for the truly good part…what’s next? Will there be more books featuring Scrub Oak, Texas, Wanda Lee Warner, and her rookie cop nephew, Todd? I sure hope so.

Absolutely. As I said, six are under contract. It is up to my publisher when they will feature over the next 3-4 years, though. Write Integrity Press has fourteen faith-based authors of all genres, fiction and non-fiction, and is now closed to adding any new ones. But they are still determined to produce one work a month, so I fit in the queue somewhere in all of that. They let me know the release month by the second edit and a firm date along with the author’s copy for a final proof. Anyway, the future books are:

Word Gets Around, In Other Words, Away with Words, A Loss for Words, Hang on Every Word

To wrap this up, I always like to ask successful authors to share a word of encouragement or a “get outta Dodge” comment for all new writers joining us today.

 Write for One person and let Him decide who reads the books. Never get caught up in the numbers game. If one soul is comforted or encouraged, so be it. You have done your job. God will do the rest. As the old hymn says, “Trust and obey, there is no other way.” Otherwise, you will become frustrated, envious, and stressed.  A myriad of other unfruitful and stifling emotions will creep inside of you, too, eating away at your creativity and enthusiasm.

Jesus’ followers had to learn from Him in order to serve Him well, therefore so must you. Keep an open mind and heart as you grow your talent. Don’t let pride get in the way and do not let the devil steal your joy!

 There you have it, folks! Thank you for sharing with us Julie. And I highly recommend WORD HAS IT! You won’t be disappointed!

 'Til Next Time…Keep reading and writing!

                                                                                                  DiANE