Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!
So excited to welcome Nancy Haddock back to Escape With Dollycas!
Out of the (Supply) Closet
(Post received from publicist)
Hello. My name is Nancy Haddock, and I have an office supply problem.
What’s that got to do with writing, you ask? Read on, dear hearts.
I’d like to trace my addiction to my children’s school days. Yes, folks, there was a time when open-all-night stores did not exist. Once too often, my children informed me they needed a particular kind of folder, poster board, or pen at 11 pm. When every retailer had closed.
While I managed not to go “Mommy Dearest” on my munchkins, I did retaliate by binge shopping school supply sales. I had four or more folders in every color. With and without pockets, with and without brads. I had lined paper, plain paper, graph paper, and yes, even carbon paper for those pesky tracing projects.
Need poster board in any color of the rainbow? Crayons? Art pencils? Black, blue, red, or green ink pens? I’m telling you, I had all that and more. Tape, liquid and stick glue, display boards, sticky notes, and the ever popular rulers. It got to the point where other mothers would call me in a panic for a supply fix. While I refrained from meeting them under a bridge to pass off the goods, I had to keep mum so their children would believe their parents were magical.
I’m getting to the writing part.
So there I am with a walk-in closet, a wall of floor to ceiling built-in shelves, all dedicated to school supplies. But wait. I can use some of these dandy items! The folders work just as well for my works-in-progress notes as they do for my kiddo’s school papers. The pens, pencils, binders are, of course, useful for my writing needs. If the children can’t use the yuck-yellow poster board, I’ll overlook the color and use it for a visualization board.
And don’t get me started on the sticky notes and index cards! There’s a whole sticky note story I’m almost embarrassed to share.
Fast forward to the kids being in college. So maybe I’m not hoarding poster board any longer, but the habit of buying—and over-buying—school supplies is established. Except now I call them office supplies.
I mean, really. Can a writer have too many notebooks? The multi-subject kind are great for notetaking at local conferences. They keep the topics nicely separated, don’t you know. Then there are the single-subject spirals so useful for travel because they are lighter and less bulky. Naturally, we can’t forget the small notebooks, suitable for tucking into one’s purse and keeping in the car.
Then there is printer paper. Come on. Office supply stores run sales on cases every week. They need me to have oodles. And who can pick up plain white paper without adding at least a few packages of color paper—and hanging folders to color code one’s files. I my favorite shades and add them to the pile in the closet. With the coordinating file tabs, thank you very much.
Now we fast forward again. I’m moving from Texas to Florida, and I have to pack everything in about two months. Yikes! Sure we were having a giant garage/ estate sale to unload a huge amount of stuff, but my writer friends come to the rescue. They get first dibs on my treasures. Some took the books I could part with (yes, I had to be sedated for that), and they also had first shot at the office supplies.
The first friend who showed up still had young children at home. I donated bags of school supplies to her. The second friend who came by shook her head and I swear she was ready to call the men in white coats on me. But, hey, everything went to a good home.
Okay, I kept a lot of the sticky notes. I kept so many that years later my daughter called for a favor. She had begun landing art department jobs in the TV and film industry, and she needed inspiration for a writer’s office. She asked me to take photos of my writing space. Which was pretty much papered with sticky notes. And it still is.
So I have a problem. At least I don’t need a whole closet for my stash anymore. Just a few dozen drawers.
Thanks for your kind attention and understanding. I have to dash off now. It’s school supply sales time again!
~Nancy
Paint the Town Dead (A Silver Six Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – Arkansas
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery (September 6, 2016)
Cover Illustration by Ann Wertheim
Cover Design by Diana Kolsky
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
An Imprint of Penguin Random House LLC
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425275733
E-Book ASIN: B015DLUR2G
From the national bestselling author of Basket Case comes the second mystery starring the crafty and cantankerous Silver Six.
Leslee Stanton Nix—aka “Nixy”—thought moving to small-town Lilyvale, Arkansas, would be about as thrilling as watching paint dry. But keeping up with her retired Aunt Sherry and her troublemaking housemates—collectively known as the Silver Six—has proven to be as exciting as it is exasperating.
To kick off the grand opening of their craft shop, the Handcraft Emporium, Nixy and the Silver Six invite Doralee Gordon to teach a gourd painting class. Doralee’s spirit gets squashed when her ex-husband crashes the class with his new fiancée, but things really get messy when the bride-to-be later turns up dead. Now it’s up to Nixy and the Silver Six to use their melons to find the killer—before someone else gets painted out of the picture…
Dollycas’s Thoughts
The Handcraft Emporium is all ready to open and The Silver Six, Ms. Sherry, Dwight Aloysius Baxter, Maisie Holcomb and her sister Aster Parsons, Eleanor Wainwright and Fred Fishner. With Nixy’s help have several classes planned to draw in the customers. The first class is a gourd painting class and they invite Doralee Gordon to show off her talents. Things get a little heated when Doralee’s ex shows up with his sister and fiancée, to take the class and try to make Doralee very uncomfortable. When the fiancée is found dead the next day and Doralee becomes a suspect The Silver Six are all excited to solve another crime. This may not be good for Nixy’s new relationship with Detective Eric Shoar, but the man seems to have the patience of a saint.
Nancy Haddock has written a wonderful mystery the immediately draws the reader in. I was surprised by the title change. The teaser chapter in the last book, Basket Case
I enjoy every one of these characters, they continue to surprise and make us see age is just a number. They are continually on the go. I wish I had half their energy. They do get their noses out of joint when they think Nixy and Eric are investigating without them. But the things are quickly back in place.
As for the new characters, Kim, the fiancée, is a greedy little witch trying to reel in husband #3. The perfect victim and the deeper the Six dug the more suspects they found. I almost felt sorry for Ernie, the ex, almost!. We also have T.C. and Amber, a dog and a cat, that were found in the alley behind the emporium. They quickly worm their way into everyone’s hearts, including mine.
This story checks all the cozy boxes, unique small town, colorful characters, an intriguing mystery to solve, a bit of romance and a bunch of humor.
As the temps get cooler, snuggle up in a blanket and get comfy with this cozy.
About The Author
Nancy Haddock is an award-winning and national bestselling cozy mystery author. Basket Case 
Visit Nancy on her Webpage, Facebook and GoodReads.
Thanks to the publisher I have 2 copies to give away!
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Nancy, I really enjoyed the first book & can’t wait to read this one. I had to laugh at the office supply store you kept so well stocked!
Doward, hi! It’s wonderful to know you enjoyed BASKET CASE, and I hope you’ll have fun with the 2nd book, too! Looking back on that supply store time, I wonder if I didn’t lean toward what we now know as hoarding. Scary thought!
Thanks so much for being here, and have a great rest of your week. Good luck in the drawing, too!
Light,
Nancy
Nancy I share your love of office supplies !!
We’re peas in a pod, L. Reeve! Do you have a thing for greeting cards, too? I buy them, stash them in a safe place, and then can’t find one when I need it fast.
Thank you for being here today! Have a super week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
What a fun confessional.
When my kids were little I had a stash of possible birthday presents for their friends
Ohmygosh, Elizabeth, I did that, too! And gifts for teacher! I’d forgotten – or maybe suppressed – that memory. Good times, and fun shopping, though!
Thank you for visiting, and have a fabulous week! Good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
I loved the first book in this series. I’ve been waiting for this one to be published. I hope my library has it soon.
JoAn, I’m tickled you enjoyed BASKET CASE, and hope you’ll like the second book. I, too, hope your library will carry it!
BTW, you might let your library know that BASKET CASE is now available in large print. It may be a trade paperback size instead of a hardback, but it’s out there.
Thank you for popping over, and good luck in the drawing! Happy week, too!
Light,
Nancy
What a wonderful interview. i too was that mother who stocked up on more than the needed school supplies when my children were in school. Every time I came home a bag from the store my husband would shake his head and mutter about not more stuff. Thanks for including Nancy Haddock and her new book on your blog. robeader53@yahoo.com
Oh, Robeader! I’m rolling on the floor about your hubby’s head shaking! Wasn’t it great, though, when you child told you he (she) needed something NOW, and you could snag it from your stash?
Thanks for dropping by, and have a great week! Good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
A delightful and great series and giveaway.
Thank you for the compliment on the series, Sharon! I appreciate it!
Good luck in the drawing and have a delightful week!
Light,
Nancy
Sounds like a great series.
Rita, thank you for coming by! If you try the series, I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Happy week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
I can never buy one of something – have to get several because
you never know when you are going to need another one.
Does make for a storage problem.
thanks for sharing.
would love to read the book.
Big grins, Mary! I know what you mean about having a spare … or three … and then having to stick stuff somewhere. HOpe you have plenty of “somewheres” in your house!
Thanks for being here, and good luck in the drawing! Enjoy your week!
Light,
Nancy
.
This series sounds like such fun reads!!!
Thanks for coming by to comment, Amanda! If you try the books, I hope you’ll enjoy them!
Have a lovely week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
It’s always a treat to be with you – thank you so much for hosting the post and giveaway, and for the lovely review.
I say this to anyone who will listen, but it’s true. Writing a review is a skill unto itself – one I don’t have! I appreciate the time it takes to read a book (and I’m a fast reader!), but also the time it takes to write a thoughtful review – whether pro or con. You nail these!
Have a wonderful rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
Sounds like a good read.
Kim, hi, and thanks for dropping by! If you give my books a try, I hope you’ll have fun with them!
Have an excellent week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
I admit I am a pen and notebook junkie — you can never have enough! I have not read any of your books before, but they sound wonderful and have definitely been added to my TBR list! Thanks for stopping by Escape with Dollycas!
Hi, Celia! So do you have journals as well as notebooks? There are some cool ones out there! 🙂
If you try my books, I do hope you’ll have fun with them! I appreciate you being here today, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
Ms. Dollycas, I had to let you (and your readers) know this. I loved my Goodby, Gourdgeous, too. My editor at the time said she fought to keep it, but the Powers That Be nixed it. According to them, the word “gourd” didn’t play well on covers or with readers. Apparently in the past there was a series that featured gourds, and it didn’t do well. On the up side, I learned the name of the book before it was finished, so I added a bit more about painting arts and crafts to “live up to” the title.
Berkley does do awesome covers, don’t they? I’ve loved every book cover they’ve done for me – and for other authors, too. What talent in that art department!
Happy day!
Light,
Nancy
Thank you Nancy for letting us know! The first title just flowed for me plus there is a book Paint the Town Dead that was released by Sybil Johnson for Henery Press last year that stuck in my mind. The cover from Berkley are Gorgeous. Now you have me contemplating the series that didn’t do well, lol. No matter the title the story is excellent!!!!!
Found a series from 2005 – 2007 – by Maggie Bruce -wonder if that is the one they meant 🙂
Maggie Bruce’s series must be the one – way to go finding the info! My feeble searches turned up squat. Since the publisher I’m seeing isn’t Berkley, I don’t know how they knew about the sales unless they went “hunting.”
Ah, well, I didn’t know there was another Paint the Town Dead title at the time I okayed it. The publisher picked it. Of course, there was also another Basket Case by a famous author that I wasn’t aware of until after the fact. So many books, so many titles! Titles are a challenge for me to come up with as it is.
I’ll pop back in later. I shut down a while this afternoon for a storm. After losing power last night while programs were running, I didn’t wan to risk that again.
Light,
Nancy
This looks like a fun series–thanks for making me aware of it!
Hello, anaj95, and thank you for coming by! Have a great week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
I’d really like to try this series. Sounds like fun!
Hi, LuAnn! As I’ve told others, if you try the series, I do hope you’ll enjoy it! I certainly have fun writing it! 🙂
Happy week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
I would love to read this, it sounds really good. I think I’ve found a new series! I live in Arkansas!
Kelley! Where in Arkansas do you live? Wait, that’s probably info too sensitive to put out here. How about what part of the state? My dad’s family was originally from Fort Smith, and I still have relatives there in AR, though they are distant and probably not interested in claiming me. 🙂
Hope you’ll enjoy the series. Have a terrific week and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
Paint the Town Dead looks to be marvelicious! Can’t wait!
Hi, Laura, and thank you! Hope you enjoy! Good luck in the drawing and have a lovely week!
Light,
Nancy
This is a new series and author to me. Both books sound like great reads. Looking forward to reading both of them. Can’t wait to read about the Silver Six.
Hi, Dianne, and thanks for being here! I hope you’ll enjoy the series if you try the books!
Good luck in the drawing and have a great week!
Light,
Nancy
I love back to school and all of the new supplies! Folders, notebooks, new pens, all so fun!
Hello, holdenj! I’m with you! School supply season still gets me pumped, and of course the bargains help. It’s like a new season, a new beginning every year.
Thank you for stopping by to comment! Have a terrific rest of your week, and good luck in the drawing!
Light,
Nancy
Hello, holdenj! Forgive the delay, please. I thought I had responded to you yesterday.
School supply season is like a new beginning of sorts, isn’t it? Fresh, new stuff and at sale prices! Hard to resist at any age or stage in life! 🙂
Thanks for being here, and good luck in the drawing! Happy rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
I fight the urge to go buy back to school supplies every year. My son graduated 13 years ago and I still have things stored away. I keep trying to give it away but I swear it multiplies at night.
Linda, I love it that you still have supplies, and I get the multiplying thing! Why is it that supplies didn’t multiply when the kiddos were young?
I appreciate you being here and commenting! Good luck in the drawing, and enjoy the rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
I did that too! You need to replace school supples alt!
Donanae, hi, and thank you for coming by! I love knowing I was not alone in my quest to stay ahead of school supplies challenge. We ought to form a club! 🙂
Good luck in the drawing, and have a lovely rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
When I was younger I never wanted to shop for supplies. But now, I go into a dollar store and can’t help myself! They make such pretty designs now, it’s hard for me to resist. I love the sound of this series!
Cynthia, hi, and thanks for popping in! You hit a key factor in my continued love of school supplies – the dollar store! The writer friend I’m lunching with today eat at a cafe right next to such a store, and always have to make a stop. As you say, such cute designs and innovative things. Too fun!
If you give the series a try, I hope you’ll enjoy it! Good luck in the drawing, and have a wonderful rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
Nancy this book you have written sounds so good i would love to read and review it also Thank you for leaving 2 print books to be given away print is all i can do due to a nerve disease that i have had for 34 years so per dr and nurses no ebooks for me but i love print anyway. I hope that this book is a hit for you as it sure sounds like one.
Hi, Peggy, and thank you so much for visiting! I read e-books on the road, but love to have a print book in hand, I’m delighted that my publisher has offered two this time!
I’m so sorry to hear about your nerve disease. I have friends with various autoimmune and nerve disorders, and I honor them for their strength and perseverance! I honor you, too!
If you try my books, I hope you’ll enjoy them. I always welcome reviews, but no pressure! Good luck in the drawing, and do have a good rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
I’m always up for a new cozy mystery! This is a new series to me and I’d love to win one of your books! Thanks for offering this chance!
Thanks for coming by, Linda! Good luck in the drawing, and enjoy the rest of your week! Happy TGIF!
Light,
Nancy
Have a great weekend!
Congrats on the new book! It sounds fantastic. Since I have the same problem, I completely understand your office supply addiction. Thanks for the great giveaway.
Thanks for stopping in, and for your congratulations, Book Lady! We really could start an office supply addition group. I propose we meet at the office supply store!
I hope you’ll give my series a try. Meantime, good luck in the drawing, and happy rest of your week!
Light,
Nancy
Sounds like a book I would really enjoy. Thanks for a chance to win a copy.
Elaine, hi and thanks for coming by! Good luck in the drawing, and have a wonderful weekend!
Light,
Nancy
Looks great!
Thanks, John! I hope you’ll enjoy it if you try it!