JENN McKINLAY: Three years ago at Left Coast Crime in Phoenix, I was sitting outside the Sheraton with my pal, Kate Carlisle, when we were joined by two other authors whose books I'd read and loved. The four of us ended up talking for hours and much hilarity ensued, because of course it did - look who I was with! Those writers were Leslie Karst and Ellen Byron. So, when the Lefty noms came out and I saw they were both nominated, I had to ask...so how's that feel going up against a bestie? And here they are to talk about it. Welcome, Leslie and Ellen.
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| Troublemakers and how: Ellen and Leslie |
Ellen and Leslie: When the Left Coast Crime award nominations were announced a few weeks ago, it wasn’t surprising that our first impulse was to call each other. After all, not only had we been pals ever since meeting at the California Crime Writers conference back in 2015, but we also share the same publisher (Crooked Lane Books), andwe’re both members of the fabulous Chicks on the Case blog. Which makes us almost like sisters, right?
And now we’d been nominated for the exact same award—the coveted Lefty, for Best Humorous Mystery—for our recent books, Mardi Gras Murder (Ellen) and Death al Fresco (Leslie). Would the competition strain our friendship? Read on, for a word-for-word transcription of our phone conversation the very morning we received the news:
LESLIE KARST: Ohmygod, Ellen! I had to read that email like six times to make sure it said what it did. Can you believe it? Both of us nominated? In the same category? And Cynthia and Kellye, too! Dang. It’s a veritable Chicks-fest!
ELLEN BYRON: I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!! I AM SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can I share a room with you at LCC? Because I’m excited, but also cheap.
Leslie:[Laughs.] Absolutely, let’s be roomies! It’ll be super fun! We can have big parties in our room every night after the bar closes! Oh, hey—and that way, I’ll be assured that you won’t even consider knocking me off to lessen the competition, since then you’d be stuck with the entire bill.
Ellen: Damn, there goes Plan A.
You know, it should feel weird that we’re competing in the same category but it doesn’t. I love you too much. Same with the other Chicks, Kellye and Cynthia. So that leaves Catriona and Tim. I am taking them DOWN!
But back to our relationship. Honestly, I would be totally thrilled if you won, Leslie. I’ll never forget when you came running up at CCWC and threw your arms around me in the biggest hug ever. You know how you instantly feel someone is a friend soulmate? That’s how I felt the instant we met.
Leslie: Same for you, girl. Remember how your first book, Plantation Shudders, was coming out in like two months, and I’d only just turned in my manuscript for Dying for a Taste to Crooked Lane? I knew diddly-squat about publishing and peppered you with all these newbie author questions, but you patiently explained to me all the crazy stuff I’d have to navigate over the next year. I swear, you immediately became like my big sister that day.
Oh, and speaking of books, Mardi Gras Murder SO deserves that nomination! I love how you include all that fascinating Louisiana history about the Orphan Train in the story, but it’s still laugh-out-loud funny at the same time. Must be all that TV writing you have under your belt. Hey, ya wanna maybe give me some lessons, some day?
Ellen: Hah! Like you need lessons. I’ve been a fan of your series ever since I cracked open Dying for a Taste. I love how you weave different arts into all your books, like Sally joining a chorus in A Measure of Murder and taking up painting in Death al Fresco. The series is so smart and funny. And your recipes are to die for! I swear, recipes are the hardest part for me. In my next book, Fatal Cajun Festival, I finally gave up on one. Instead I wrote “R.I.P. Sweet Potato Pralines,” and explained that no matter how hard I tried, I could not come up with a decent recipe. I had to do something, because I make such a big deal about sweet potato pralines in the book.
Leslie: Dang, that sounds good. I love pralines! Maybe I should make a batch to bring up to Vancouver for LCC. We can keep them in our hotel room as snacks for our after-the-bar-closes parties. [A pause.] Come to think of it, maybe I should bring up allof my own food and keep it locked up away from you in our hotel room safe. Wouldn’t want you to get any ideas about poisoning my poutine...
Ellen:[Sighs.] Oh well, there goes Plan B.
JENN: And the nominees are (which I highly recommend):
To celebrate their exciting news, Ellen and Leslie will each give away a copy of their Lefty-nominated book to one lucky person who comments on this post below!
Thanks so much for joining us, Leslie and Ellen. So, Reds and Readers, have you ever been up against a pal for an award? How did you handle it?
Ellen Byron’sbestselling Cajun Country Mysteries have won Best Humorous Mystery Lefty awards and been nominated for multiple Agathas. Mardi Gras Murder,the newest addition to the series, garnered Ellen her fourth Lefty nomination. Writing as Maria DiRico, she’ll debut a second series, The Catering Hall Mysteries, in 2020. Her TV credits include Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents.Fun fact: she worked as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.
The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karstlearned early, during family dinner conversations, the value of both careful analysis and the arts—ideal ingredients for a mystery story. Putting this early education to good use, she now writes the Sally Solari Mysteries (Dying for a Taste, A Measure of Murder, Death al Fresco),a culinary series set in Santa Cruz, California. An ex-lawyer like her sleuth, Leslie also has degrees in English literature and the culinary arts. The next in the series, Murder from Scratch, releases April 9th.
