Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Winters.
Hi Mary, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
As a child, I loved to read and write. My first piece of writing was a play my sister and I performed for our parents at Christmas. I kept writing, mostly poems and short stories, and by the time I enrolled in college, I had written a full-length historical romance novel.
When I was in college, I got an idea for a mystery set on a college campus with a professor as an amateur sleuth. I started the novel but didn’t finish it. Instead, I went on to graduate school and wrote a literary novel for my thesis. But the amateur sleuth professor was always on my mind, and after my daughters started preschool and I had a little more time to myself, I finished the novel titled An Act of Murder.
I had a passion for mystery and decided to pursue publication, but I didn’t know anything about the business.
College encouraged literary work, not genre fiction. So I decided to send the book to a few small presses that were open to submissions. I received a call from one of the presses about six months later, and that was the start of my publishing career in 2016. Since then, I’ve obtained an agent and published three short stories in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.
I’ve also published three book series, including the Professor Prather academic mystery series with Camel Press, the Happy Camper cozy mystery series with Kensington, and the Lady of Letters historical mystery series with Berkley, my current publisher. The first book in the series, Murder in Postscript, was released on March 28, 2023.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Many writers learn about the publishing business before they ever write their first book. I, on the other hand, had to learn it as I went along. That was challenging, especially while juggling a job and family. After I found an agent, however, I had someone to help me with the business.
But I’m still learning, and I’m okay with that. I never want to stop growing as a writer. Changes occur every day in the publishing world, and writers have to be ready to adapt. Thankfully, I’ve never been afraid of trying new things. I consider myself a lifetime learner who is as passionate about learning as writing itself.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in the mystery genre, but I love immersing readers in the setting of a book. My Happy Camper series, for instance, is set in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. After spending time in Spearfish Canyon, I was inspired to set up the Happy Camper gift shop in a small tourist town like so many in the area. It’s a fun place to shop, but it’s also surrounded by the real dangers of nature.
Victorian London is also a wonderful, immersive setting, and I was inspired to set the Lady of Letters series here after a trip to London in 2019. Victorian literature was one of my first loves, so to be able to write a book set in the era was a dream come true. I was honored to have Murdered in Postscript receive a starred review in the Library Journal.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Mentors are so helpful, and the best place for writers (especially rural writers who might not have local connections) to find them is through organizations like Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.
I belong to those organizations, but others depend on the genre of interest. I wish I had known about them before publication. They have mentorship programs as well as webinars to help writers navigate the world of writing and publishing.
Contact Info:
- Website: MaryWintersAuthor.com and MaryAngelaBooks.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/marywintersauthor and www.instagram.com/maryangelabooks
- Facebook: www.Facebook.com/marywintersauthor and www.Facebook.com/maryangelabooks
- Twitter: @marypensmystery
Image Credits
Julie Prairie Photography
