Today we welcome Julie Mulhern, author of the Country Club Murders and the Poppy Fields Adventures, whose new book, Killing My Softly, releases in December. Welcome, Julie!
When I wrote the opening line of what would become my Country Club Murders series—”My morning sun doesn’t usually involve corpses”—I never dreamed I’d still be writing about Ellison and Frances and Grace ten years later.
Ten years.
The time has passed much slower for Ellison and her family than it has for mine.
Ellison and her teenage daughter are still firmly planted in the mid-1970s. Meanwhile, the girls who inspired so many of Grace’s scrapes are grown. With my source material out of the house, I’ve had to be much more creative when it comes to imagining Grace’s exploits.
And then there’s Ellison. The poor woman has found bodies in haunted houses and brokerage offices, in commercial freezers and under football stands. Along the way, she’s learned how to stand up for herself, pick her battles, and protect her family.
I’ve learned a few things in the past ten years, too:
(1) Some people have minds like steel traps. Me? I have a mind like a steel colander. I have to keep a character list, not for the book or the series, but for the chapter I’m writing. If I don’t keep a list, the same character ends up with multiple spellings of their name (or multiple names).
(2) Coffee is essential. Really, there’s no creatively without the good stuff (Ellison would heartily agree).
(3) In addition to coffee, I need new experiences and interaction with people. Either can spark ideas or thoughts of murder. As you can imagine, the COVID lockdown was not my friend.
(4) Speaking of friends, homophones are definitely not my friends. I curse them daily, and there’s a good chance they’re going to exact their revenge.
(5) Like Dorothy Parker or Robert Benchley or Frank Norris (all of whom have been credited), “I hate to write, but love having written.” Some days. Other days, when the words flow and I have a clear picture of the way forward, writing is a delight. It would be lovely to know what kind of day to expect, but I’m never that lucky.
(6) Marketing matters. Readers have to find a book before they can read it.
(7) Quality matters. No one reads book two if they didn’t like book one.
(8) Being funny is no joke.
Years ago, with only a few chapters of The Deep End written, one of my critique partners (one who never said anything nice) commented, “I don’t know where you’re going with this, but I’m along for the ride.”
What a ride it has been.
Readers: What’s the biggest change in your life in the past ten years? Have you learned anything from it?
Julie Mulhern is the USA Today bestselling author of The Country Club Murders and the Poppy Fields Adventures.
She is a Kansas City native who grew up on a steady diet of Agatha Christie. She spends her spare time whipping up gourmet meals for her family, working out at the gym and finding new ways to keep her house spotlessly clean–and she’s got an active imagination. Truth is–she’s an expert at calling for take-out, she grumbles about walking the dog and the dust bunnies under the bed have grown into dust lions.
Book 17 in the Country Club Murders, Killing Me Softly, will release on December 26th.
Chicks on the Case 
As another Kansas City based mystery writer, I love your Country Club Murders series! As for my challenges, getting all those threads to weave tightly together at a book’s end is my biggest one.
Looking forward to Killing Me Softly.
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Mary, I had no idea you were from KC. We’ll have to get together!!!
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Mind like a steel colander. Thank you for my morning laugh. And for the quote ‘I hate to write, but love to have written.’ (I don’t care who said it!) I’m writing my 6th book in the Alexa Glock forensics mysteries. One thing I’ve learned along the way: don’t name your main character Alexa. She’ll set off your devices. Oh well- too late!
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At least you didn’t name her Siri….
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Thanks for the inspiration, Julie. Even after the many writing challenges, you continued and found solutions to each. Excellent!
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Congratulations, Julie. Ten years! Wow!
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Ten years! Book 17! Julie, love your series. You’re a true inspiration – as an author and as a marketer, to keep a series successful for so long. That’s not easy these days. Of course, it helps that it’s witty and addictive. 😉 Congratulations!
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Bless you!
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Thanks for your thought, Julie.
My Natalie McMasters series debuted in 2018 with Stripper! (no, it’s not a cozy series). Since I’m a pantser, I could not have predicted where it would go–each book is a fresh creation arising from the depths of my deranged mind. Unlike you, I do not need interactions with people for inspiration, but I certainly do need my beta readers to help me keep my books on track. I have been trying to do a series bible for years, writing an entry per day, but it seems to take too much time away from writing the books themselves. Plus, to be worth anything, it’s got to be indexed so I can find stuff–better to just use the existing books if I have a question about what I did in the past. Besides, consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, or something like that, right?
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Something like that! I actually hired someone to work on my series bible. She’s fabulous and it’s wonderful to be able to look back at secondary characters.
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Get those Beta readers on it. I wish I had started one for a couple of my faves (JD Robb could use lots of help but handles it with such a great attittude).
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Love this list, Julie, especially the steel colander–so true! And 17 books in 10 years? Yowza! Thanks so much for visiting the Chicks today, and congrats on the upcoming release!
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Leslie, thanks for having me. I’m thrilled to be here!
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Ten years is a long time. I love the things that you’ve learned. I’ve just learned I have a lot of catching up to do to read all 17 of your books. Your marketing may have been great, but I guess I wasn’t paying attention. I am now!
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I hope you enjoy each one!
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Thanks for being on the Chicks today, Julie! And congrats on all your accomplishments!
In my own past decade, I’m grateful to be steadily writing for a living & that my babies are growing up (too fast!) to be more mature and independent individuals.
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Jennifer, those kiddos. You blink and they’re in college. Enjoy every moment!
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In the last ten years, I’ve had two jobs with a couple of temp jobs in there as well. Plus, I’m now working from home. Lots of changes. And I’ve learned that change still scares me.
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Ten years and way more than 10 amazing books! Thank you for all you put into making my world a little better.
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Jeanie,
Thanks for joining me and Ellison on the journey!
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Happy ten years, Julie! You were one of the first authors I friended on FB. I LOVE your books–and your marketing. (Except maybe not so much those hostess-with-the-mostess 70s food photos, ha. Talk about gags.) Congrats on your success, and thanks for visiting us Chicks today. Biggest change for me in 10 years? Becoming an author of adult rather than kid mysteries, yes. But also a sad one: losing my parents.
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Lisa,
Those JellO molds get BIG interaction. Every time.
So sorry about your parents.
xo,
Julie
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Congratulations on 10 years of awesomeness, Julie! Love your list, and I couldn’t agree more.
I’ve had a LOT of change over the past 10 years. The biggest lesson: I can do hard things.
Thanks for being here, Julie, and for sharing your wonderful books with the world. ❤
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