Janie Pritchett-Clark came to Eureka Springs on vacation 30 years ago, and never left. The journalism graduate worked most of those years for newspapers. But Clark, who writes fiction under the pen name Jane Elzey, says making it up is more fun.
Elzey recently published two mysteries, Dying for Dominoes and Dice on a Deadly Sea, part of her Cardboard Cottage Mystery series. She worked on the first book for more than a decade, and its publication happened to coincide with the pandemic lockdown in early 2020.
“I knew Dying for Dominos was the right book, the right title, the right cast of characters—and I pretty much knew what was going to happen,” Elzey said. “It took years of rewrites to learn how to write that story, with those characters, and that mystery. Although I am a journalist by trade and have been writing my entire career, I had to learn the craft of writing long fiction, developing characters, hiding clues, and creating a story that is unique to the page. It was a long learning curve, and I’m still learning.”
Her inspiration came from a writing trip to Zihuantanejo, Mexico, and a group of friends who played dominoes one summer. It is, however, purely fiction. She was in Mexico on a month-long writing holiday for book two when the pandemic news hit.
The time that followed, when everyone was hunkered down, turned out to be good writing time. She finished book two, Dice on a Deadly Sea, that summer.
“I love how time passes so swiftly and joyfully when I am writing,” she said. “Hours can pass without my realizing it, and I wonder where it is, exactly, I have been.”
Dying for Dominoes was released in May 2020 with what she calls “a teeny splash and a little help from friends on social media. I think I sold about 200 copies in the first few months. It was difficult to have joy at a time when the world was suffering. And yet, here I was achieving a goal I had for most of my life. The only thing that would have been different is that I would have celebrated with a lot more champagne and a lot more friends.”
Some murder mysteries are gruesome, but those are more aptly called thrillers. Elzey’s are a genre called “cozy mystery” which should bring to mind Agatha Christie or P.D. James. “The cozy genre has rules authors are expected to follow for the reader’s benefit,” she said. “In cozies, there is no sex, cursing, gore or depravity. The murder usually happens off the page and the mystery (and the fun) is in finding whodunnit.”
When asked where she got her inspiration, or if she has never murdered anyone. Elzey laughed.
“The library is full of fiction we can be pretty certain the author did not experience,” Elzey said. “Suspending disbelief is the writer’s tool. It’s all about the research—the Google kind. Mysteries are not about the murder; they are about the puzzle, about human nature, about finding justice for the victim in some way. Just as horror isn’t about the monster so much as the fear it instills in us.”
Although unable to do the book launch parties she had planned, she received a good review in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Becca Martin-Brown wrote: “Jane Elzey, a Northwest Arkansas author who just published her second book, is good — really good! Her ‘cozy’ murder mysteries have twists and turns that would make Agatha Christie proud. Her characters are nuanced and very real, and I want very much to sit down with them for tapas and wine.”
Elzey didn’t start out to write a series about female bonding, but it has worked out that way, it seems, as readers express how much they enjoy the friendships. The four characters are very close, experiencing the push and pull friends often go through, especially under stress. Relationships seem fragile on one layer and stronger than rock on others.
“I think I tapped into this closeness that seems to be something we all want if we don’t have it, cherish if we do, and that includes all the stuff that makes for good story drama,” Elzey said. “Writing about these characters and their connections has taught me a lot about human nature and the need to belong.”
She sees writing as a craft, a skill, a profession like any other, that you get better at with practice. The second book took a little more than a year to write. The third one is now underway. Elzey suspects it may take her another year to complete it. Poison Parcheesi and Wine is about four friends and the Arkansas wine country, and another crime they need to solve to get out of trouble.
Elzey’s background in publishing was key to her decision to self-publish. She created an imprint called Scorpius Carta Press, and in doing so, became an “independent” author.
“There isn’t as much stigma as in years past for this route, and a good book in the hands of a reader is a good book no matter who publishes it,” Elzey said. “I heard stories from traditionally published authors at conferences and knew independent publishing was the right decision for me. I enjoy every part of the process and I didn’t want to give over the control or profits to a traditional house, even if there had been a line at my door. (There wasn’t.) I’m not sure I would have been as confident if I didn’t have that background.”
Dying for Dominoes and Dice on a Deadly Sea are available at bookstores and on Amazon, or visit the website at CardboardCottageMystery.com. Autographed copies are available from the website: JaneElzey.com.