Month: August 2023

Those Furry Side Kicks #18

On By Victoria LK Williams (Vicki Williams)In Uncategorized1 Comment

ANNA ST. JOHN

Website: Anna-StJohn.com
Facebook: CozyAuthor
Twitter: @AuthorStJohn

Anna St. John is a lifelong writer. She began her career as editor of her college newspaper and held positions as a professional journalist, political consultant, and advertising copywriter before she established her own advertising agency — which she ran for forty years. 
Today, Anna writes cozy mysteries from her home office in a small Kansas town where she is within walking distance of a working blacksmith shop like the one in her Josie Posey series. Her Old English Sheepdog, Oliver, serves as an inspiration for the fluffy pooch in her first novel, Doomed by Blooms, now available in paperback, ebook or audiobook.

From Anna’s Website… Josie Posey, a mature yet ever-feisty big city crime reporter turned crime solver, has officially retired to a small, touristy town in middle America. In DOOMED BY BLOOMS, Josie agrees to interview a local ballerina for a story that quickly turns into a murder investigation. The ballerina’s husband is found dead in the couple’s field of flowers, and Josie was the last to see him alive. With her loyal Old English Sheepdog, Moe, by her side, Josie and her posse of mahjong-playing friends are determined to ID the murderer before anyone else gets hurt.

Who is your protagonist’s sidekick?
Josie’s Old English Sheepdog, Moe, is her constant companion. He is modeled after my own dog, Oliver, who bravely guards our property each day–chasing cats, rabbits, squirrels, birds, raccoons and skunks who dare to enter his realm.

What role does the animal play in the story?
Moe is by Josie’s side nearly everywhere she goes. When she gets behind the wheel of her little red VW convertible, Moe jumps into the back seat to ride along. Together they cruise the quaint streets of the village – Josie’s hair and Moe’s ears flying in the wind.

Does your animal help or hinder your sleuth?
Generally, Moe is a helper. He listens to her theories, alerts her when he senses danger, and comforts her when she is injured. He has also been wrong on occasion – like the time he raced into the back garden to chase an intruder and returned saturated with skunk spray.

Give us 1 example of the interaction between your main character and the Fury Sidekick.
Late one night, Moe wakes Josie with whines and nudges, directing her to the back door of her cottage. The two peek through the window to see the shadow of an unfamiliar object on the back deck. Moe is by her side as Josie turns the lock and opens the door, aiming her flashlight at the object. An odor assails Josie’s nose, Moe scrambles out the door, barking with his “big dog” voice, and they tackle the object together. Feathers fly as they pounce on a crate of flapping hens and discover a warning note attached to the top of the crate.|
The book also includes a hint of romance, as Josie’s matchmaking friends encourage her to date again – particularly to pursue an attraction toward a certain local blacksmith, with whom sparks fly.

Give the readers a hint of what’s coming for your character in future books.
In future books, Josie’s sheepdog, Moe, demonstrates his ability to sniff out the bad-guys. Josie and the police chief form a closer working alliance. The mahjong friends take a more active role in some of the investigations. And Josie’s relationship with the blacksmith “heats up.”

Victoria LK Williams

Those Furry Sidekicks #17

On By Victoria LK Williams (Vicki Williams)In Author Interviews1 Comment

S.A. KAZLO

http://www.sakazlo.comwww.sakazlo.com
twitter@sakazlo
https://www.amazon.com/stores/S.A.-Kazlo/author/B09VTCMMM6
https://www.facebook.com/SamanthaDaviesMysteries

From the author’s bio:
I’m a retired teacher living in upstate New York with my hubby and two very active dachshunds. Like Samantha in my debut novel, Kibbles and Death, I’m a hooker, rug hooker that is. Follow Sam and her dog, Porkchop, as they stumble onto bodies and try to solve the murders. Sam has to contend with a hunky new detective in town, but at the same time, he sparks her interest. Sam drags her Southern Belle cousin, Candie, along for the sleuthing. Look for more of Sam’s murderous adventures in my Samantha Davies Mystery series.

Samantha Davies has gotten her life together after a nasty divorce from her husband of 35 years. Unfortunately, she and her dachshund, Porkchop, keep stumbling upon dead bodies. Sam, along with her Southern belle cousin, Candie, who never met a rhinestone she didn’t like, and Porkchop set out to solve these murders, so their friends and family member don’t wind up as guest of the Wings Falls Police.

Who is your protagonist’s sidekick?
Samantha’s sidekick is a reddish-brown, short-haired dachshund named Porkchop.

What role does the animal play in the story?
Since divorcing her husband of 25 years, Porkchop has been Sam’s constant companion and main man. He has helped her in her sleuthing adventures in her small town in upstate NY, Wings Falls.

Does your animal help or hinder your sleuth?
He definitely helps, especially in this latest novel, where he helps Sam escape from the murderer.

Give us 1 example of the interaction between your main character and her furry sidekick.
Sam’s Furry Sidekick, Porkchop, is the main man in her life after her divorce from her husband. In my latest book, A Wedding Gone to the Dogs, Porkchop saves Sam and her cousin, Candie, from being murdered by a jealous suitor of Candie’s fiance.

Is your book part of a series? Tell us about the series.
Samantha is a writer of children’s books, a hooker-rug hooker that is-and part owner with her ex in a funeral parlor; The Do Drop Inn Funeral Parlor. She lives in a small town in upstate New York with her dachshund, Porkchop. Her best friend is her Southern belle cousin, Candie, who never met a rhinestone she didn’t like. Unfortunately, Sam has a habit of stumbling on to dead bodies. Since a number of these crimes involve her, her family or friends, and she, being the caring and loyal person she is, feels compelled to help solve them.

Give the readers a hint of what’s to come for your characters in future books
Sam and Porkchop are definitely going to be needing their sleuthing skills in future books; whether it is solving a murder at their local barbecue competition, the winter carnival or summer in the local beach town of Lake George.

Pre order the newest book, release date of September 19, 2023

Victoria LK Williams

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Victoria LK Williams

Those Furry Sidekicks #16

On By Victoria LK Williams (Vicki Williams)In Author Interviews, Interviews, pets, Reading, Writing, Habits1 Comment

LYNN FRANKLIN (& DASH)

https:lynnfranklin.com
https://www.amazon.com/author/lynnfranklin

When Lynn Franklin was a child, she often accompanied her jeweler grandfather on his local buying trips.  As they traipsed the grungy streets of Pittsburgh, Grandpa carried a battered briefcase filled with diamonds, emeralds, rubies and sapphires. These trips provided fertile ground for Lynn’s imagination, allowing her to search the shadows for thugs, thieves and spies.
So it came as no surprise when, at the age of eight, she demanded a deerstalker hat and wrote her first mystery novel. To hone her sleuthing skills, she studied the case files of Nancy Drew, Frank and Joe Hardy and Trixie Belden.
In time, Lynn became a professional writer and an Accredited Jewelry Professional. But she never lost her fascination with gemstone history and lore. And so the Kimberley West Gemstone Mystery Series was born. She also writes the Top Dog Detective Series and the Grandpa Max Tall Tales series.
Lynn and her Pulitzer Prize winning husband Jon Franklin live in the Chesapeake Bay area with their standard poodle Dash. Dash works just as hard as his humans, creating comic relief for Lynn to include in her books.


The Kimberley West Gemstone Mysteries pulls readers into the captivating world of gemstones and jewelry. A pair of precocious dogs provide comic relief.

My newest book, The Poodle Who Sang Undercover, blends Nancy Drew with a pair of wisecracking dogs. This is a total departure from my normal style. I wrote this book to make people laugh.

Who is your protagonist’s sidekick?
In the gemstone series, Kim’s sidekick is a black Standard Poodle named Rorschach, Rory for short.
The Poodle Who Sang Undercover features Sam, a black Standard Poodle and Tucker, a Longhaired Dachshund. The two dogs imagine themselves as the Nero Wolfe (the dachshund) and Archie Goodwin (the poodle) of the dog world.

What role does the animal play in the story?
In the gemstone stories, Rory accompanies Kim most everywhere. In addition to providing comic relief, he sometimes literally digs up clues, protects Kim and tries to warn her when someone seems suspicious.In The Poodle Who Sang Undercover, Sam and Tucker work with their human partner to solve the mysteries. Along the way, they make some very pointed comments about the way humans behave.

Does your animal help or hinder your sleuth?
Rory mostly helps Kim. But sometimes his antics lead her astray.
Sam and Tucker are pretty good at keeping their focus on the mystery – unless there’s food available (Tucker) or an audience (Sam).

Give us 1 example of the interaction between your main character and the Furry Sidekick.
This scene is from The Poodle Who Sang Undercover. To track a dog kidnapper, Kim, Sam and Tucker go undercover at a dog show. This requires Kim and Sam to run an agility course – something neither of them had ever done.

“At this point, the cheering was so loud that Sam couldn’t hear Kim’s next cue. But she was pointing at a flat, low jump. Oh, wow, a broad jump!
He cleared the jump and grinned back at Kim.
“That’s not a jump!” Kim shouted.
She pointed at the object he’d just cleared.
“Box!”
The strain in her voice broke Sam’s heart. She clearly needed cheering. And that meant: Zoomies!
Sam pushed off from his back legs, leaped into the air and zoomed around the box. He ran so fast he created his own wind tunnel. His ears flapped, his tail wagged, his paws barely touched the ground.
Once, twice, three times, he circled the box. As he came around for a fourth try, he spotted Kim standing nearby, her finger pointing straight down.
“Hey, Kim,” he shouted. “Watch this!”
He adjusted his angle and charged toward what he now realized must be the silly the pause box.
“Slow down!” Kim said.
But Sam had other ideas. He leaped onto the box, planted his front feet and dropped to his butt.
The brake specialists at Chevrolet and Ford could learn much about “stopping on a dime” by talking with a poodle.

Give readers a hint of what’s to come for your character in future books.
Sam, Tucker and their teenage sidekick will continue their quest to save The Top Dog Detective Agency from bankruptcy by accepting cases the police won’t touch.
In the next gemstone mystery, Kim and her standard poodle sidekick search for a priceless pendant with a cursed history.

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Victoria LK Williams

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