Cozy mystery author Darci Hannah is a native of the Midwest and currently lives in a small town in Michigan. She’s an avid baker, and Murder at the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off is the second book in the Beacon Bake-off Mystery series.
Small-town shenanigans at Christmas
Darci said that because her protagonist runs a bakeshop in a lighthouse, she wanted to write a Christmas cozy involving baking. On a whim, she did an Internet search for ‘Christmas cookie shenanigans.’ She discovered an article in the police blotter with that very title from Saugatuck, Michigan.
“Apparently, the town hosted a holiday event titled, a Christmas Cookie Tour of Inns. Every inn in town offered a unique Christmas cookie, inspiring guests to visit each inn and vote for their favorite cookie. It was a great idea, until three women decided to sabotage the inn that was in the lead by stealing their free cookies. According to the article, the man at the front desk was distracted by two women while a third made off with twenty dollars’ worth of Christmas cookies. Only in a small town! It was so hilarious that I just had to make my fictitious Michigan village do the same and have a town-wide Christmas cookie competition. And keeping with the spirit of the season, yes, Christmas shenanigans do happen.”
Murder at the Christmas Cookie Bake-off and staying sane during the holidays
When asked if there was a theme or argument in her Christmas cozy, Darci said, “My argument would be something like, ‘Hey, the holidays come around every year. Embrace them and do the best you can.’ I think sometimes we have such high expectations during the holidays and try to do so much to please everybody, including ourselves.”
Darci shows that message in Murder At The Christmas Cookie Bake-Off when her protagonist, Lindsey Bakewell, decides to pull off the perfect Christmas. “It’s something that keeps eluding her every year. But this year Lindsey has big plans, and she’s determined to carry them out. We find her frantically trying to run her under-staffed bakery while decorating her lighthouse and trying to prepare for her parents and guest who are coming to spend Christmas with her. She’s keeping her head above water… until a self-proclaimed Christmas diva proposes a town-wide Christmas cookie bake-off. Lindsey is determined to get into the live bake-off that will be held during the annual Christmas Festival and win the whole thing. However, since not everyone loves to bake cookies, she finds herself baking cookies for other businesses in town. Then, as if she didn’t have enough on her plate already, her parents arrive early, and someone is murdered! Lindsey is determined to find the killer and save Christmas, even at the expense of her well-planned, perfect Christmas.”
Bringing joy to readers and herself
“The most important thing for me when I write is to enjoy the process. I enjoy telling stories and sometimes even surprise myself when a character demands that the story veer off in a different direction. My sense of humor somehow always pops into my stories. And although writing is my entertainment, for readers my books are meant to be a yummy nugget of pure enjoyment. If you find something deeper in them, wonderful. But shaking up your life view is not something I ever intend to do. If my stories can transport you from the worries of your world for a moment and bring you joy, then I have done my job.”
The Christmas cookie bake-off challenge
“I cook nearly all of our meals at home (because I like to cook) and during the pandemic I thought it would be fun to make my own dog food for my two dogs, a golden retriever and a springer spaniel. While they now love mealtime, I have to admit it’s more work for me than I had bargained for. Every four days I make a huge batch of dog food! If we’re traveling, I make a few HUGE batches of dog food and freeze some. My dogs have already told me they’ll never eat kibble again. Deer scat, yes, but not dog kibble.”
In writing Murder at the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off, Darci baked a lot of Christmas cookies. “By the time December rolled around, my sons would disappear right after dinner. ‘Does anybody want any dessert?’ I’d ask their retreating backs. ‘I’ve got cookies.’ In January, all the men in my family fought back with the one thing that just stops me in my tracks. That damn no carb diet.”
Darci describes her baking research as ‘kind of shameless’. She said, “After visiting a lot of lighthouses in Michigan and elsewhere, I have a habit of checking out the local bakeries. I once ordered a cinnamon roll the size of a dinner plate. I told my husband, who was shaking his head at me as I placed my order, ‘Well, normally I’d pass on this, but I’m here on research.’ I use that line a lot!”
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Learn more about Darci Hannah and Murder at the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off at www.darcihannah.com. Did you like this interview? If so, click here to read more Behind the Story interviews from your favorite authors.
