Jayne is ever-confused, but always loyal. She is also, shall we say, somewhat lacking on occasion in the finer points of social skills. Gemma has an amazing memory (for things she wants to remember), incredible observational skills, and a lightning fast mind. A nice young woman who owns an interesting bookshop, lives in a pleasant community (in this case, on Cape Cod), and has a circle of friends.īut, by the time I got to page two, Gemma Doyle had become “Sherlock”.Īnd that’s been enormous fun to write. My original intent was that the main character would be a normal cozy character.
Hudson’s Tea Room next door, run by Gemma’s best friend Jayne Wilson. Many I have read, some I haven’t, but I enjoy fitting the book to the imaginary character buying it.īecause cozy lovers (and me) love food to go with their reading, I put Mrs. I’ve enjoyed stocking my bookstore, and as befits a book about a bookshop, I drop a lot of names of real books.
What would a bookstore be without a cat? In this case, one Moriarty, who has a strange antipathy to Gemma. And, presto, a fully operational bookstore. Throw in all the modern pastiche novels, nonfiction works on Sir Arthur and his contemporaries, maybe a few books set in the “gaslight” era. Not only things I mentioned above but all the stuff that goes with it: playing card sets, tea towels, games, puzzles, action figures, cardboard cut-out figures. You could easily stock a store with nothing but Sherlock. When I started to do some research on that, I quickly discovered it’s not such an unfeasible idea. The idea popped into my head: A bookstore dedicated to all things Sherlock Holmes. When I was looking for inspiration for a new series, I thought a bookstore would be fun.
I’m a cozy writer and I’m also a keen mystery reader. Old books reissued and re-illustrated, new ones being written.Īnd so I created Gemma Doyle and the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium.
I don’t have to tell you how popular Sherlock is right now, from movies to TV to more books than you can count. The trick is not to come up with an original idea, because you probably can’t, but to make it your own.Įnter Sherlock Holmes. (Why it’s always a boy, is a post for another day.) It’s been written a hundred times, from the tales of King Arthur to Star Wars to Harry Potter. Take the story of an orphaned boy: a lowly (and lonely) childhood a hidden, ever-watchful guardian dangerous times an eternal enemy the big reveal of the boy’s true identity then, armed with knowledge of his destiny, boy saves world. There is, as we are always being told in creative writing classes, no such thing as a new idea. And guess what! She has a new one out soon! I’m pleased to say we’ve become friends since then and I’m endlessly entertained by her and her books. She was droll and witty and very clever and I immediately knew she was someone I wanted to get to know better. Vicki moderated the very first panel I was ever on at Left Coast Crime. I’m so happy to have Vicki Delany visit us at Chicks.