About Malice in Miami

Malice in Miami: A Jamie Quinn Mystery
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Independently Published (June 9, 2021)
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 318 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8518046757
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08P27FRL6

Reluctant family law attorney Jamie Quinn is loving life–and why wouldn’t she? Her boyfriend Kip is back from Australia, her long-lost dad finally has his visa and she’s about to start her dream job at an art foundation. But it all falls apart when Jamie is accused of stealing priceless art from a rare book collection. If she can’t find out who framed her, she can kiss her dream job good-bye–and her law license too. Meanwhile, Kip has problems of his own. Now an environmental activist, he uncovers a deadly secret–one that just might get him killed. Jamie’s in trouble, Kip’s in danger, and Duke Broussard has gone AWOL. How could Jamie’s favorite P.I. abandon her at a time like this?

About Barbara Venkataraman

Barbara Venkataraman is an attorney and author of the award-winning Jamie Quinn Cozy Mystery series, as well as Teatime with Mrs. Grammar Person, Quirky Essays for Quirky People, and A Year of Shorts: Flash Fiction. Her books have won numerous awards including Indie Book of the Day, First Place in the 2016 Chanticleer Murder & Mayhem Mystery Writing Competition, Gold Medal in the Readers’ Favorite Contest for Memoir, and Two-time Finalist in the Kindle Book Awards. She also co-authored Accidental Activist: Justice for the Groveland Four with her son Josh about his four-year quest to obtain posthumous pardons for The Groveland Four.

Q&A With the Author

When did you first consider yourself to be a writer?

I considered myself a writer the first time I actually finished writing a story. I had written plenty of essays and poems but couldn't seem to finish a story. After I started writing a short story titled If You'd Just Listened to Me in the First Place I kept getting stuck, really stuck, and I would put the story away for weeks and months at a time. It would nag at me until I pulled it out and wrote until I got stuck again. It took me a year to finish that very short story but what it taught me about dialogue and pacing and plot was invaluable. Most importantly, it taught me to keep going until I finished, no matter what.

What advice do you have for a new writer?

Treat writing like a job; devote time to writing and learning how to write, every day if possible. Treat writing like the air you breathe, like you need it to survive. Writing can be rewarding and also punishing, especially when you're filled with self-doubt, but push through, it's always worth it. As E.L. Doctorow, one of America's greatest novelists, said: "Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”

What is the easiest part of the writing process for you?

There's an easy part? Ha! After writing six cozy mysteries in a series I expected to know how to do it, that it would get easier, but it hasn't. Each book presents unique challenges. I think the easiest part is that I know the characters so well I don't have to guess how they'll react to a new situation. The other easy part is getting excited at the start of a new project. It's all fun and games until you paint yourself into a corner, but once you find a way out, it's very satisfying.

What is your favorite part of this story?

I love to write the funny scenes. If they make me laugh I figure they'll make the reader laugh too. But my favorite part of Malice in Miami is the last chapter. I always save the emotional scenes for the end and they make my heart sing.

Which Character was the most fun to write about? Why?

I have to say that Jamie is the most fun because she's the narrator so she's in every scene. Also, she's my alter ego and gets to have all of the adventures I'm too chicken to have.

Which Character was the hardest to write about? Why?

I would have to say Jamie's dad was the hardest. He's suffering from PTSD and I wanted to be accurate in my description but I have no experience with PTSD. I had to do my research and hope I captured the essence of that experience.

Author Links – Amazon Author Page – GoodReads

Purchase Link – Amazon

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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

September 1 – Novels Alive – GUEST POST

September 1 – I’m All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

September 2 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 2 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT

September 3 – Didi Oviatt – Author – SPOTLIGHT

September 3 – ThisIsMyTruthNow – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW

September 4 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT

September 5 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT