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Larissa Reinhart’s funny smart Southern mysteries introduce heroines who are sassy, strong and funny – and generally have an “ex” from some past disaster hanging around like “forbidden fruit.” Perhaps it’s not surprising then that when the award winning and Wall Street Journal best selling author started out, she thought she was writing romantic comedy.
Hi there, I’m your host Jenny Wheeler and today Larissa talks about why she loves funny dialogue and redemption stories and why she’s working on a paranormal series set in Japan – when she gets a spare moment from her three mystery series.
Six things you’ll learn from this Joys of Binge Reading episode:
- Why journalism didn’t work for her as a career
- How living in Japan’ has helped her writing
- Her secret ‘paranormal project.
- The big part humor plays in her mysteries
- The writers she admires most
- Why her favorite characters are ‘tough dudes wishing to redeem themselves’
Where to find Larissa Reinhart:
Website: https://www.larissareinhart.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/larissareinhartwriter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/larissareinhart/
Facebook Group: The Mystery Minions
What follows is a “near as” transcript of our conversation, not word for word but pretty close to it, with links to important mentions.
Jenny: But now, here’s Larissa . Hello there Larissa and welcome to the show, it’s great to have you with us.
Larissa: Thank you so much Jenny, it’s great to be here. Thanks so much for inviting me.
Jenny: Beginning at the beginning – was there a ‘Once Upon A Time’ moment when you decided you just had to write fiction – and if so what the catalyst?
Larissa: Well really as far back as I can remember, I’ve been creating stories mostly in my head. I can remember about the age of four writing lists of words that I knew, and in first grade I was putting together little books and then selling them in second grade to my neighbours. I’ve always been into this book business I guess! I won some awards for writing when I was younger, but then I never thought seriously about becoming a writer as a career. I worked from my local newspaper in high school, and I really hated interviewing people and calling them up.
I’m a little introverted, so that was really difficult for me. Thoughts of journalism that I’d been kind of toying with in high school disappeared with that, and I did take some creative writing courses in college but mostly I just focused on my major which was History and Art History. So I didn’t really take it seriously.
But about seven or eight years ago, my family was living in Japan and I had been a teacher, but I was no longer teaching. My daughters were young, but they were in school for the first time all day. I’ve lived in Japan before, so I didn’t need to take classes or anything like that.
I had this time that I’d never had before. I was reading maybe three or four books a week and enjoying that, but wanting to do more. Reading a popular series at the time, I was telling my husband how I would have written the fourth book differently because I wasn’t satisfied with it. So he encouraged me and said “why don’t you get back into writing and just try?” So that’s what I did! And spending those two years in Japan, I wrote one manuscript that I will probably not do anything with; it was kind of an experiment. And then the second manuscript I wrote was Portrait of A Dead Eye. I can’t really remember, but I think I had it finished before we moved back to the US.
I came back with it, and showed it to a friend who was a writer and she encouraged me to look into different writing groups like Romance Writers of America, and tried to get it published. So that’s what I did.
Jenny: You’re extremely productive – with three different series on the go – Cherry Tucker Mysteries, then Maizie Albright, Star Detective and Finley Goodhart Crime Capers – why did you choose the mystery genre?
Larissa: Well I think it kind of chose me. I like the puzzles and the thriller aspects of plots, and how it drives the characters forward. I didn’t really plan to just write mysteries; originally I didn’t even realise Portrait of A Dead Eye was a cosy mystery.
When I submitted it to my publisher, I thought it was more of a romance, “Chick Lit” type book with a mystery sub plot. I read all kinds of genres, so that’s one of the reasons why I’m not very good at understanding where certain books fall into certain genres. But I guess I’ve just continued on- I like mysteries, so I’ve just continued on with them.
Maizie Albright is definitely a little bit more Women’s Fiction or “Chick Lit” than Cherry Tucker which is more cosy. Finley Goodhart is a little bit more crime thriller I guess, but they’re all mysteries definitely.
Jenny: Yes, that’s right. With Maizie there’s a lot more fashion and sort of female stuff, isn’t it really? It amazes me actually that you seem to be so up with all the trends in both fashion and slang!
Larissa: If you saw how I dress, you’d be really, really surprised! I actually keep barneys.com open while I write those, because I have no idea about fashion! I just look at “ok, that’s trending; that’s what she would probably wear”. I’m pretty clueless when it comes to dressing myself, so it’s kind of funny!
Jenny: It seems all of your heroines are “pretty tough dudes” with “history to overcome” as you describe it in the first Cherry Tucker “Portrait of a Dead Man.” Is there something that draws you to the challenge of seeing these hard grafters make good?
Larissa: Well I guess I just like those sort of characters, and I’ve always liked those kind of characters. I particularly like the tough dudes- men or women really- who are trying to redeem themselves. I just love those kind of stories. All my main characters are amateur sleuths, and so I have to think about what would make someone want to investigate a murder, because it’s dangerous! You have to be kind of tough, or very stupid! I’d rather have some kind of grid and drive for justice then create a backstory that would give them those motives! Really the whole time I’m writing, I’m thinking you should really just let the police handle this themselves! I would make a terrible sleuth.
Jenny: So you need to give them a complicated back story that explains why they would take these risks?
Larissa: Yes, exactly. Otherwise to me, it just doesn’t make sense.
Jenny: When you began did you intend for Cherry Tucker to be a series?
Larissa: I think I did – I was thinking about this the other day, and it’s hard for me to remember. I really started with the characters and her relationships with her family members and her sort of ex-husband, and of course her romantic interest. All those ideas were just kind of ping ponging in my head before I had the actual plot for the story. I wrote it pretty fast; I think I wrote it in about three months, so I don’t think I was really thinking about it series wise. But I did want to continue with those characters somehow, so I ended it so it could stand alone in case it picked up. But luckily my publisher wanted it as a series, so that all worked out!
Jenny: Great! The mysteries have a very strong element of romantic comedy as well – very funny dialogue – so you’re really telling a multi genre story . . . does humour come naturally to you?
Larissa: Well I’m not a very funny person, but I guess it does. I’ve just always enjoyed books that had a lot of humour. I’m a big fan of Carl Hiaason, Stephanie Bond and Jennifer Crusie. I like those stories that are focused more on dialogue. I don’t do well when it comes to stories that are really dependent on explaining the settings and everything else that’s going around them. But I just really love dialogue, so I guess that just kind of comes a little bit naturally to me! I always write dialogue out first and have to fill in everything else later.
Jenny: That’s quite an interesting way to go about it. I’m curious about your hashtag chapter headings in Maizie Albright. Do these help your readers find you? Do you use all those hashtags on Social Media as part of your marketing strategy? How does that work?
Larissa: To be honest, I don’t know if its helped readers find the books. I’ve tried using the hashtags like on Twitter and things when they were releasing, but I don’t think they went anywhere! I actually just used them because of Maizie’s age. She’s 25, and she comes from that “hashtag” generation. So it seemed natural to have that in the book.
Actually when I got the idea for the series, I had been flipping through TV shows and saw that this reality show- I don’t even know if it’s on anymore- called Rich Kids From Beverley Hills (I think that’s what it’s called) and I saw that they used hashtags for everything. I think because they were instagramming their lives, you know that sort of thing. So I thought that would just be a fun way to do the chapter headings.
Jenny: It worked really well, and I read a wonderful review that used this hashtag #adorbs. That word “adorbs” I have never seen before, so when I came across it I thought oh my gosh! It was obvious it was kind of a slang way of saying “adore”, but “adorbs”. So #adorbs I thought was really one for the file!
Larissa: Yes! Well maybe it is working on social media, I don’t know! It’s fun too, and I like chapter headings so it’s kind of fun to come up with them for that series.
Jenny: Yes, she’s a very sparky lass Maizie is, that’s for sure! And you’re indie published through your own publishing company, Past Perfect Press? Have you always been an indie?
Larissa: I guess I’m hybrid, because I still have books with Henery Press; that’s who published my Cherry Tucker series. But I am indie published with the Maizie Albright series and the Cupid Caper. I had an agent who wanted to sell Maizie Albright, but I have a lot of friends who are indie writers and I really like the idea of having that kind of creative control.
So I wanted to try it. But I really wanted to do it properly so I went about setting up an imprint and getting it registered. I even created a business plan even though I’m the only one who saw it! I didn’t realise I was really a control freak, but I guess I am because I like controlling what my covers look like and what prices to set the books at and that kind of thing. It’s been hard, and a lot of work, but it’s been really fun too.
Jenny: So you will continue with that?
Larissa: I think so. I’m kind of open to experimenting with this sort of thing, so I’m not going to close my doors to any publishers. But right now, I’m really happy with what I’m doing.
Jenny: Would you ever consider publishing other people’s work?
Larissa: I don’t know. At this point in my life, it would be difficult because I’m having trouble balancing my family life with my writing life and with the added business part of it, it’s kept me pretty busy. But I don’t know; maybe in the future. My daughters are in high school and junior high school, so maybe when they get a little older and have me driving them around less! I might look at something like that, but right now I don’t think so.
Jenny: Right. I mean you mentioned right at the beginning about how you sold your little books when you were just a tiny tot; it sounds like there is an entrepreneur hiding inside of you somewhere there! It’s perhaps not so surprising that you’re finding you’re wanting to do it all as a business plan.
Larissa: I never thought about it that way, but I guess so!
Jenny: If it’s true that we tend to write the same story in different forms what do you think that story is for you?
Larissa: Well, I do see that I use a certain theme in all the three series. They’re all about women who have been abandoned by their parents, or one parent in some form and that’s kind of moulded them into the person that they are. So with Cherry it was her mother, and with Maizie Albright she has both parents there in the story, but her mother is quite a stage monster and her father because they were divorced, hasn’t been around for her during her childhood.
Then with Finley Goodhart, her mother was killed and her father is the antagonist in the story. So I’m seeing this theme when I step back, and I don’t know- maybe it’s because my parents were great and they didn’t abandon me! It’s not anything I’ve found in my own life, but maybe it’s because I was a teacher; or maybe it’s because what we talked about earlier- looking for motives for what would make an amateur sleuth work for me. It just seems to be a theme that I keep bringing up in all my stories.
Jenny: Yes, it’s interesting isn’t it? I read another comment you made earlier which sort of harks back to what you were saying at the beginning; you said somewhere that you never thought people like me could be a writer. I wondered what circumstances there were that led you to feel like that? Was it simply just a matter of being a young woman and most of the writers seeming to be men, or was it something more personal?
Larissa: I’m from a really small town, a farming village. The people I grew up with- my parents were teachers and that made us a little unusual. The people around us were either farmers or fireman, policeman, nurses or factory workers. So I didn’t know anyone really who was kind of a creative person. I knew creative people, but none that made a career out of it. So to me, anyone who was a writer would be from New York City or something; somebody a lot more sophisticated from where I came from. So I never seriously considered writing as a career I guess because of that, even though I was surrounded by books as a child.
My parents were big readers, and of course they were teachers too. I spent most of my childhood reading, but you know the author part of it always seemed very far off and kind of mystical and magical. I wasn’t one to really investigate about the lives of the writers; I only really cared about the books. So I guess that’s why.
Jenny: That sounds very understandable. Moving to a more general focus, away from specific books to your wider career…. Is there one thing you’ve done in your writing career more than any other that’s been the secret to your success?
Larissa: You know, I really don’t know how to answer this other than I write the stories I really want to read. I’ve read a lot – I think all writers read a lot, and that’s a little bit of a cop out. I don’t strategically plan out thinking about a series and what other people would want to read. I’m writing the characters that come to me that I care about and I want to hear their stories. And then I really like connecting with readers on an everyday level. I try to make myself accessible to readers and I enjoy talking to them, so I think that’s been really great as my career as an author. As a person, its been wonderful. I’ve met so many people, and I just really enjoy that.
Jenny: You’ve been to Japan four times and appeared on a reality TV House Hunting Show, “Living in Nagoya.” And you’ve said your ultimate dream is to: “eventually write a YA paranormal mystery series set in Japan with mythological Japanese creatures.” How has being in Japan impacted your work?
Larissa: Oh I wish I had more time to work on that! I’ve been thinking of starting it, but because of the other series I’ve had to put it aside. Plus I really love young adult books and my daughters are reading those books now. I would love to have something for them to read. I mean they probably could read my adult books but I don’t want to encourage it, not that there’s anything bad with it; I don’t know, it just feels a little weird! Japan has such interesting mythological creatures and I just find it so fascinating.
Also, it’s so popular there. There’s so many monster shows and monster hunting shows and things like that. With all the Anime and the Manga Comics. So I just need time to work on it. It’s something I really want to do- plus I just want to have a series based in Japan because I have such a strong affection with the country, having lived there for so many times.
Jenny: Yes I wondered just following up; how has Japan impacted on your work? Obviously you got your opportunity to write your first book while you were there, but has it impacted you in other ways that come through in your work?
Larissa: Well, you know thinking about it, when I began writing over there part of it was I was kind of missing Georgia. When we’re in the US, my family misses Japan and when we’re in Japan, we miss Georgia. You know how that goes! I think it was a way for me to connect with Georgia while I was living there, setting my stories here in the states. So I think that was partly part of it- a way of stepping out and looking back at the setting and the people here. I think having that distance helps me with my writing.
Jenny: Sure, I can appreciate that.
Turning to Larissa as reader
Jenny: The series is called “The Joys of Binge Reading” because I see it as providing inspiration for people who like to read series . . . .So – turning to your taste in fiction who do you “binge read” ?
Larissa: I just finished Fierce Kingdom, although that’s not really a binge read. I’ve been wanting to read it for a while, and that was really great. That’s by Gin Phillips, and she’s actually from Alabama which I didn’t realise until I read her book. It’s kind of a literary thriller I guess you would say, speaking of someone who’s not good at understanding genre!
I will read anything Jennifer Crusie writes. I love Elmore Leonard- he’s my favourite, and I reread books too. So I love his. And I’ll just go through periods where I’ll be doing historic romance like Mary Balogh, I’ll be doing a lot of those at once, and then I’ll get tired and switch to young adult. Amie Kaufman and Starbound series. I love those, and I was able to recommend those to my daughter which was nice. Julie Kagawa’s young adult books are great, like The Iron Fey series.
You know when I was living in Japan earlier, there weren’t things like Amazon and the Internet. I could only get Penguin Classics there that were written in English.
So while I was living in Japan, I was reading Thomas Curry and Jane Austen, people like that. So that was an interesting thing to do I think in my 20’s, maybe early 30’s that I just had a focus on Classic books because that’s all I could get my hands on. Of course the last time I lived there, I had my Kindle so I was able to get anything I wanted which was really nice!
Jenny: That’s lovely! A very wide range of authors there. Of course the Hunger Games would have been one I’m sure your girls have followed closely.
Larissa: I love the Hunger Games! I can still remember, it was one of the first books I downloaded as an e-book, so I read the first book- I think my cousin recommended it. Then I downloaded the next two. I was like, this is awesome I can just get these books immediately!
Jenny: I think that has contributed to the whole binge reading thing; it is fantastic when you discover someone and just go and get their book immediately. You don’t have to wait until the next morning and see if the library has got it!
Larissa: Exactly- it’s great!
Circling back to the end
(I see this as a bit of a narrative)
Jenny: At this stage in your career, if you were doing it all again, what would you change – if anything?
Larissa: When I had my contracts for Henery Press with the Cherry Tucker series, they kept me pretty busy and I think I was publishing two books a year maybe, or maybe towards the end one book a year. I think about two books a year. But I was trying to write in between those books, and I did have a couple of manuscripts finished.
I wish I had indie published them to kind of get into the indie publishing game at an earlier time, because now I feel I’m a little late getting into it. So there was a lot of opportunity there I wish I could have taken up. I’m very happy with the way my career has gone so far; I wish I knew more about marketing and I wish I still knew more about marketing! I’m not very good at that. But no, I guess I’m pretty happy.
Jenny: What is next for Larissa as writer? New projects under development?
Larissa: Well I’m writing the new Maizie Albright mystery- I think that will be out this fall. Then when I’m working on one book, I’m always thinking about the other books I want to be writing; it’s kind of an issue with me! But I need to write the next. Probably the one after the that will be another Finley Goodhart, because the Cupid Caper- I really wrote it for my readers who are signed up to my newsletter because I had given them this short story with Finley Goodhart.
I think two years ago I wrote it as a Christmas gift and now when you sign up for my newsletter, you can get it for free. But I had a lot of readers who enjoyed it and wanted another Finley Goodhart story. So I thought, I’ll just squeeze one in before I start working on this new Maizie Albright. I started writing it in January, and it turned into a full novel. So that ended up being the Cupid Caper. That ended up being pretty successful, so now I need to write another one in that.
So this is the problem I’ve created for myself! But I actually want to do some women’s fiction type romantic comedy book. I have a trilogy in mind that I want to start, and of course that Japanese young adult book I need to work on! So yes, too many books, not enough time. It’s always a problem if you’re a reader or a writer, right?
Jenny: That’s right. I’m sure you’d be great at romantic comedy. You already are very good with the humour in your mysteries. That would be fun! Where can readers find you on line?
Larissa: I am quite out there; I enjoy speaking with my readers. So I have a website- www.larissareinhart.com and I’m on Facebook and Instagram regularly. I’ve tried to do Twitter and some of the other things, but I just find they don’t work for me as well as Facebook and Instagram. So that’s mainly where I am. And then I do have a fan club on Facebook called the Mystery Minions … and I really chat a lot on there.
This week we’re actually talking about which books we’re reading, so that’s been fun. Everybody’s been adding to their “to be read pile” with that! And if anybody is interested in that prequel story I was talking about- if you go to my website, you can sign up for my newsletter and that’s a free gift. So you can always unsubscribe and keep the gift if you like. But I’m happy to give that story away; it’s called Pig in a Poke.
Jenny: Fantastic, that sounds great fun. Do you send out a newsletter?
Larissa: I do. It’s not a regular newsletter, like I don’t send it weekly or monthly. I just kind of send it when I have news in not just new releases; I like deals, because I’m a reader too. I always put together every month my friend’s new releases and book deals and put that on my blog. That’s about the only thing I put on my blog! Then I’ll send that link in my newsletter with whatever other sales my books might be in and the events that I do. I’m going to be in Illinois in July, so there’s a couple times people can catch up with me! I was in South Carolina earlier this month and that was really fun- I just met with some of my readers and we had coffee and just talked, so I really love that.
Jenny: What do readers tell you they love most about your books?
Larissa: I guess the characters, they identify most with the characters. I have some who are real hard core Cherry Tucker fans, and some who love Maizie Albright. Then with the Cupid Caper, it’s been interesting. Some people really like the character of Lex, who is Finley Goodhart my heroine- her kind of ex boyfriend and ex partner in crime.
Jenny: Still hanging around though- like a husband that won’t go away!
Larissa: Exactly! I have those a lot in my stories too, I guess!
Jenny: Yes, in all of them there’s that man there just lingering, sort of tantalisingly but the heroine’s saying no, I don’t think just right now!
Larissa: They’re kind of just dangling there like forbidden fruits or something!
Jenny: Look it has been wonderful talking Larissa, thank you so much for your time. I do hope that you get that Japanese series or trilogy written. I’d love to read it, and we’ll look for your books in the future with a great deal of anticipation.
Larissa: Oh that you so much for having me on! This was so much fun, I really enjoyed it.
Thanks To Our Technical Support:
The Joys of Binge Reading podcast is put together with wonderful technical help from Dan Cotton at DC Audio Services. Dan is an experienced sound and video engineer who’s ready and available to help you with your next project… Seek him out at dcaudioservices@gmail.com or Phone + 64 – 21979539. He’s fast, takes pride in getting it right, and lovely to work with.
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