A Conversation with Mystery Author JoAnne Myers

with JoAnne Myers

We are delighted to welcome author JoAnne Myers to Omnimystery News today.

JoAnne writes both long and short fiction in a variety of genres. Her murder msytery is Murder Most Foul (Melange Books trade paperback), and we recently had a chance to talk with her about her work.

— ♦ —

Omnimystery News: Murder Most Foul is your first full-length mystery. Might it also be the first of a series?

Photo provided courtesy of
JoAnne Myers

JoAnne Myers: I was unsure at the beginning of my writing career of just how many books I had in me. Not writing a recurring character into my other books was something that just did not appeal to me in the beginning. Also, some of my characters are of high school and college age, so I don't know how one character could fit into some of my stories. My first mystery fiction Murder Most Foul is based on a true homicide case from my hometown of Logan, Ohio. It was and still is a very sensitive case and a black cloud over our town. I wanted to tell the story, but did not want readers and especially those from Logan, to associate the book with the actual case, and the reason I chose to write the story in fiction form. My hero in Murder Most Foul is F.B.I. Agent Walker Harmon, and I married him off at the end of the story. Bringing him and his bride back would be appealing to me at this time in my writing career, and I am considering doing that. I am searching for a fresh plot.

OMN: Tell us a little more about your characters.

JM: My lead characters are both male and female, and of various ages. I like writing about strong female characters. Someone who sticks up for herself and likes a good fight. Some of my lead characters are also protagonists, and don't always survive to fight again. Not all my stories end in "happily ever after."

OMN: Into which mystery subgenre would you place Murder Most Foul?

JM: I find categorizing books into sub-genres is confusing and unnecessary. There seems to be some mystery or romance in every story, even if the story is not considered a romance or mystery. I feel placing stories into one main genre should be sufficient.

OMN: How much of your own personal or professional experience have you included in your books?

JM: Yes, I usually write my story characters to fit a person I actually know. An individual meets many scrupulous and unscrupulous people over the years, and all these individuals are so different from each other, making it hard for me not to write about acquaintances.

OMN: Describe your writing process for us.

JM: I prefer to write an outline of the story before I begin to write. For me winging it becomes confusing. I prefer organization while I write.

OMN: How do you go about researching the plot points of your stories?

JM: When it comes to true crime, I definitely need to research the case. I usually go to courthouses and scour the homicide cases. I look up the case in the newspaper, and gather police reports. When I write fantasy and paranormal, I research those topics. A werewolf or vampire might be a fiction creature, but they do not necessarily need to have the same supernatural abilities. One writer might make his vampire transform into a bat or wolf, and anther writer might make the vampire have mind control, or be able to clone his appearance to resemble someone else.

OMN: How true are you to the settings of your stories?

JM: Many of my stories are set in actual locations. I research the town or county to get a feel for how the character would live in hat environment. For example: Does the location have caves, or a landfill, or bodies of water, which is always good for love scenes or hiding bodies.

OMN: If we could send you anywhere in the world to research a setting for a book, where would it be?

JM: That would be to Alaska. From the commercials I have seen, Alaska most be a beautiful by dangerous atmosphere. The isolation, the bears, and the high mountaintops. All good inspirations.

OMN: What are some of your outside interests? And have any of these found their way into your books?

JM: I love movies and canvas paint and sell my artwork on my website. Some of my characters enjoy these hobbies as well. Everyone should have a hobby.

OMN: Complete this sentence for us: "I am a mystery author and thus I am also …".

JM: "I am a mystery author and thus I am also very curious, and at times cynical."

For true crime, I love researching the needed material for the book, but at times very saddened at what I discover. Homicide cases are so cruel and unnecessary. For mystery and especially fantasy, almost anything goes there. With mythological characters, the author can make them behave in the most daring or vicious way.

OMN: How do you go about selecting a title for a book?

JM: My titles always relate to the book content. With my true crime biography, The Crime of the Century, I chose that title because that crime was the crime of the century for that small Ohio town where the crime was committed in. I like the title to relate to the story it holds. I feel that gives the potential buyer of the book a heads up to what the story pertains to. I personally hate buying a book because the title appeared interesting, and then am disappointed in the story, because the title suggested an entirely different read.

OMN: As an artist, have you been involved with the cover design of your books?

JM: I was very involved with the cover design of all my books. For Murder Most Foul, Flagitious and Loves, Myths, and Monsters, the designers were getting frustrated with me because I rejected many designs, before deciding on one. For my biography true crime books, I photographed the actual river that my characters were discovered in, and used that as the cover. For Twisted Love I described the cover, which is of a heart with a dagger going through it, to a local artist who put the design on paper for a small fee. For Wicked Intentions, I scoured cover designs companies over the internet and discovered the cover myself.

OMN: What kind of feedback have you received from readers?

JM: I hate bad reviews. I find it mind boggling when one reviewer gives a book a 4 or 5 Star, and another reviewer gives the same book a 2 star. What's up with that? As for readers, I get nothing but good praises.

OMN: What kinds of books did you read when you were young?

JM: I loved Charlotte's Web and Black Beauty. I don't know if those stories were a muse, but I tried writing children stories years ago, and sent several into the Walk Disney Company. I was sent a rejection letter stating that they did not want to use them at that time, but would keep them on file in case they did want parts of them in the future. I often wonder if they used parts of those stories and never acknowledged me.

OMN: When selecting a book to read for pleasure today, what do you usually go for?

JM: I usually go for true crime. I find the mind of a serial killer fascinating and pathetic.

OMN: What about other types of entertainment?

JM: I enjoy action and adventure movies, and my stories reflect that. I loved the Indiana Jones movies, James Bond films, and Gone With the Wind. I enjoy a wide variety of movies and music. I don't enjoy movies that have an abundance of sex in them or violence. I can't watch any of the Hostel films. It deals with torture. That terrifies and sickens me. I also hate Grunge music or any head banging music.

OMN: What's next for you?

JM: My detective/mystery Murder Most Foul is being transformed into a screenplay, so that I may offer it to production companies as a film.

— ♦ —

JoAnne Myers has been a long-time resident of southeastern Ohio, and worked in the blue-collar industry most of her life. She is a mother of three and grandmother of eight, and enjoys spending time with relatives, and volunteering her time within the community. Besides having several novels under her belt, she canvas paints.

For more information about the author, please visit her website at BooksAndPaintingsByJoanne.com and her author page on Goodreads, or find her on Facebook and Twitter.

— ♦ —

Murder Most Foul
JoAnne Myers
A Murder Mystery

Solving a grisly double homicide proves to be pure murder for the dangerously handsome FBI Agent Walker Harmon. With a suspect list involving the victims' parents, ex-lovers, Satanists, a contaminated crime scene, corrupt police, and the motorcycle gang the Devil's Disciples, circumstances turn the hunt personal, as the hunter become the prey.