Interview with humor mystery author Tristi Pinkston

Today's special guest is humor/mystery-female sleuths author Tristi Pinkston. She's talking about her newest novel Taking the Floor, the third book in her Estelle Watkins mysteries series, and other fun things.

Bio:

Tristi Pinkston is the author of almost thirty books ranging from cozy mystery to historical fiction to sweet romance and everything in between. She works as a freelance editor and is the owner of Trifecta Books. She’s a popular presenter at writers’ conferences and sits on the board of directors for iWriteNetwork. In her free time (who are we kidding – she has no free time) she likes to spend time with her husband and four children and take really, really long naps.

Welcome, Tristi. Please tell us about your current release.

Taking the Floor is the third volume in the Estelle Watkins Mysteries series. Estelle is a spunky older lady who keeps finding dead bodies and stumbling upon mysteries, and she can’t help but try to solve them. Her best friend Vera is her cohort as they snoop around and try to ferret out the bad guy while keeping a hot dinner on the table.

In Taking the Floor, Estelle and her husband, Sam, are invited to take part in a local version of Waltzing with the Wealthy, a ballroom dance competition. When the young woman in charge of assigning the dancers to their teachers is found murdered, Estelle is in the perfect position to investigate the crime.

What inspired you to write this book?

I’m a really big fan of Dancing with the Stars, and it was fun to write a spoof of the show. Estelle and Vera always make me laugh, and I enjoyed putting them in the middle of a setting I know well and could replicate easily.

What exciting story are you working on next?

Taking the Reins, which is the fourth Estelle Watkins Mystery, is currently being produced online by BigWorld Network, and Taking the Cake, which is the final book in the series, will be coming out in a few months. Right now, I’m trying my hand at short sweet romance novels, which are new for me and very fun. I’m still working on my other cozy mystery novels as well … basically, I’m writing a little bit of everything.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I wrote my first poem when I was five, which totally thrilled my mother and she started telling everyone I was getting a book ready to publish. Um, not quite, but it was nice of her to be so proud of me. I tinkered with writing my whole life, but I would say that I didn’t realize I actually could become published until 2000. My first novel came out in 2002, and I’ve had nothing but tons of fun ever since.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?

I don’t write full-time, although I try to get in about an hour a day. I work as a freelance editor and I run a publishing company, so those two things take up the bulk of my work time. I find that I’m not happy unless I’m also working on one of my own books, so that’s what keeps me finding time for my projects. I’m very thankful that I have a career that allows me to work from home, as I do have four children.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I can’t write without a glass of ice water, mostly ice, sitting next to me. I know it’s not good for my teeth, but I am an ice eater, and if I don’t have some, I have to go get some or I can’t work. I’d say I go through about thirty pounds a week.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be a writer and a mother. And I get to do both. I feel very blessed.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

My writing is fun, off the wall, and clean – and I’ve been known to make people crack up in public and spew water all over their computer screens. That’s kind of a warning just so you’re prepared with paper towels and so forth. 

Links:

Website | Amazon

Thanks, Tristi!  Happy writing!