Are you cozy?

[CBumpkin]

How do you feel about cozy mysteries? Usually set in quaint settings where the murder happens "off-screen" to spare the reader the violence. Sex is also most often downplayed, if discussed at all. The sex and violence are more inferred than discussed.

Personally, I love them to bits. I loathe reading anything with sex, graphic/gratuitous violence and vulgar language. Cozies are perfect.

However, in this day and age where sex, violence and language are so commonplace that people don't even think twice when they hear about a murder on the news or watch something on television that, in recent years past, would have been rated R in the movie theater!

I know from reading Miss Snark, who agents mysteries, that the number of publishers that buy them was down to seven! (And that was in her late 2005 archives!) That certainly cuts down on a writer's opportunities, doesn't it?

What do you think? Do you like reading them? Do you enjoy writing them? Is there still a decent market for them or is it waning faster than Miss Snark's gin pail?

Any suggestions on how I could research the market/publishers to find out how cozies are doing these days?

[BfloGal]

Personally, I love cozies. I have also heard that a lot of publishers are staying away from them, but I still found a whole basketful last time I was in the bookstore, so somebody must be publishing them. (At least I hope so, since that is also what I'm attempting to write.)

I'm a total newbie, so I have no info to share, but if you find out the marketing/ publishing information you seek, be sure to share. I'd be interested too.

[Clair Dickson]

I think a lot of mysteries will probably run middle of the road-- not quite cozy, but certainly not hardboiled. (Baby Shark comes to mind-- high body count, but nothing graphically depicted.)

As far as short story pubs go, I can certainly say that there are far more zines and such that cater towards stories with a lighter touch than those that include sex and violence.

Given how many people don't want to read explicit sex and violence, there will always be a market for cozies, I think. The Janet Evanonvich lines and Sue Grafton lines are going quite well, and they certainly aren't hardboiled. Cozy, I don't know, but not hardboiled.

I don't know how to tell what's selling, though. You might try getting on to some online lists-- maybe DorthyL or something. A place where the folks like to talk about mysteries, and particularly cozies. There are places for hardboiled and noir writing (like Rara-Avis and CrimeSpace) so there have to be places for cozies, too.

And to be honest, regardless of how many publishers are buying [insert type of book] if the book is good enough, it will find a home with someone. As long as one publisher is buying at least one of whatever book, they will buy a great book.

At least that's what I tell myself regarding my own hardcore, hardboiled stuff... =)

[Williebee]

I really like cozies. And, once I finish this Urban Fantasy thing I'm on, I want to start writing them.

I would think that, between production costs and the encroachment of "short attention span" tastes, that cozies should be a growing market. Slowly, but growing.

Shows what I know.

[CBumpkin]

Personally, I love cozies. I have also heard that a lot of publishers are staying away from them, but I still found a whole basketful last time I was in the bookstore, so somebody must be publishing them. (At least I hope so, since that is also what I'm attempting to write.)

I'm a total newbie, so I have no info to share, but if you find out the marketing/ publishing information you seek, be sure to share. I'd be interested too.

I'll post the info here as I find it BfloGal. (That's the least a Country Bumpkin can do for a Buffalo Gal!)



I think a lot of mysteries will probably run middle of the road-- not quite cozy, but certainly not hardboiled. (Baby Shark comes to mind-- high body count, but nothing graphically depicted.)

As far as short story pubs go, I can certainly say that there are far more zines and such that cater towards stories with a lighter touch than those that include sex and violence.

Given how many people don't want to read explicit sex and violence, there will always be a market for cozies, I think. The Janet Evanonvich lines and Sue Grafton lines are going quite well, and they certainly aren't hardboiled. Cozy, I don't know, but not hardboiled.

I don't know how to tell what's selling, though. You might try getting on to some online lists-- maybe DorthyL or something. A place where the folks like to talk about mysteries, and particularly cozies. There are places for hardboiled and noir writing (like Rara-Avis and CrimeSpace) so there have to be places for cozies, too.

And to be honest, regardless of how many publishers are buying [insert type of book] if the book is good enough, it will find a home with someone. As long as one publisher is buying at least one of whatever book, they will buy a great book.

At least that's what I tell myself regarding my own hardcore, hardboiled stuff... =)

Thanks for the feedback, Clair. Good points. You reminded me of the second rule of writing. I can't believe I forgot it (although it's good to know the stats in publishing, too). What's the second rule of writing? "Good writing trumps everything." That means it doesn't matter what you write or what rules are broken when you write it, as long as you write it well.


I really like cozies. And, once I finish this Urban Fantasy thing I'm on, I want to start writing them.

I would think that, between production costs and the encroachment of "short attention span" tastes, that cozies should be a growing market. Slowly, but growing.

Shows what I know.

We may have somewhat similar tastes, Williebee. When I first heard the phrase "urban fantasy," I thought. Ugh! Forget it! The problem was, Mr. Smarty Pants didn't even know what it was before he made a judgment on it. (In my defense, the word "urban" these days doesn't describe anything I like, from music to clothes to anything else.)

Then I looked it up (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_fantasy) and realized that those are exactly the kind of fantasy books I do like! I'm not so much into magic and fantastical beasts, but I do like stories with real settings that have a fantasy feeling to them. Maybe not the strictest sense of the term "urban fantasy" but pretty close.

As for cozies, I think they're the best thing since Doritos. I have characters already costumed and run through full-dress rehearsal, all ready to take their places on stage. Characters, wazoo, upward direction...

What I'm still working on is what job my MC will have. All the jobs I would naturally love for them to have, have already been done and I don't want to imitate anyone. (Librarians, reporters, pastors, retired, etc.,)

If the market is tight, you and I are going to have to be great writers to prove our books are worth a publisher's finances and effort.

[CBumpkin]

Hmmm... I wonder... Is there such a thing as a cozy suspense novel? (It's late, I can tell.)

[CBumpkin]

In reference to my wondering about "cozy suspense" novels, I went to Google and typed: cozy mysteries and "cozy suspense"

This thread came up as the #1 search result. I've never been a #1 search before. Check please! ;)

[speirbhean]

I'm a fan of cosy - give me a book which begins with the rain lashing against the windows of an old manor house in the English countryside and I'm sold - but what I'm writing is more what I'd term a 'character driven' thriller. I'm trying to build up a cast of characters the reader will care about - particularly when one or two of them meets a dodgy end! So at the moment, in the first third of the book there's as much domestic detail as there is crime. And then I'll increase the shootin's and the stabbin's when the characters are fleshed out a little... well that's the plan anyway!!!

[stormie]

Oh cozies! I love 'em. I can't handle hard-boiled mysteries as much. That's why I only read about one-half (if even) of Ellery Queen magazines.

Sharyn McCrumb, M.C.Beaton, Diane Mott Davidson, Nevada Barr... Go here (http://www.cozy-mystery.com/index.html) for more books and authors.

[CBumpkin]

LOL I just came from visiting that website, Stormie. I was clicking on the links and reading the reviews on Amazon.

What burns my buttons is when people don't know the difference between a review and a book report. So many people give way too much of the books away in their reviews. Alas, I'm forced to press the NO, THIS REVIEW WAS NOT HELPFUL button.

[CBumpkin]

Question for all cozy mystery readers: Which do you enjoy more, traditional cozies or contemporary cozies?

ETA: What elements of cozies do you love most? Do you like them more on the humorous/quirky side or only a sprinkling of it with emphasis more on the serious side? In general, what do you love about cozies and what would you like to see authors do with them?

[stormie]

Oh, humorous, definitely humorous and quirky. Life is too serious sometimes, and those types of cozies take me away from it and make me laugh.

[BfloGal]

Question for all cozy mystery readers: Which do you enjoy more, traditional cozies or contemporary cozies?

ETA: What elements of cozies do you love most? Do you like them more on the humorous/quirky side or only a sprinkling of it with emphasis more on the serious side? In general, what do you love about cozies and what would you like to see authors do with them?

I think I like the humorous/quirky side, as long as it is not overdone. Some of the cozies I've been reading lately have characters that are quirky to the point of being cartoonish. When that happens, I think they've gone too far. I'm waiting for the talking dog -- Jinkies!

I like characters that I can care about, and settings that I'd like to visit. I like the absence of strong language and sexual content (although there's a lot more than there used to be in what are now being labeled cozies)

I'd like to see authors continue the humorous trend, but improve the quality of the mysteries. Several of the cozies I've recently read have fallen into the trap of making the only likable characters be the culprits -- it was a little obvious.

[stormie]

Several of the cozies I've recently read have fallen into the trap of making the only likable characters be the culprits -- it was a little obvious.
Formula for a Mary Higgins Clark book (though not a cozy): Throw in a ton of characters so your head spins, then make the likable character the bad guy. You can figure out her books by one-fourth of the way through.

[CBumpkin]

I agree with both of you. You know, I've never read any of MHC's books. There's not much that's worse than a predictable mystery story.

I'm starting a new novel and have been trying to figure out which genre I want to write in. There are several that I'm interested in. I needed an idea to get me excited about going in one direction or another. Today, it came to me and it would make a great cozy mystery.

I've been wanting to write for this genre for some time but have never had an idea I thought was good enough. (I have to really love the idea to write about it.) Now I can get started!

[ishtar'sgate]

Cozies are my all time favorite reads. I got hooked on Agatha Christie when I was quite young but the last writer I remember enjoying in the same way was Martha Grimes and her old English pubs series.
Linnea

[Josie]

Dropping in from lurkdom.

I love cozies, the quirky humorous ones...

Can any of you suggest a few authors for me??

Thanks, :) Josie

[stormie]

Anything M.C. Beaton, Sharyn McCrumb (her Missing Susan is really funny), Martha Grimes' Foul Matter is a humorous take on authors and the publishing industry. It's very tongue-in-cheek.

[CBumpkin]

Cozies are my all time favorite reads. I got hooked on Agatha Christie when I was quite young but the last writer I remember enjoying in the same way was Martha Grimes and her old English pubs series.
Linnea

I'm heading to the library today and think I'll pick up an Agatha novel for old time's sake. Have you read the Father Brown stories by GK Chesterton? He's a priestly sleuth. Good stuff!

Dropping in from lurkdom.

I love cozies, the quirky humorous ones...

Can any of you suggest a few authors for me??

Thanks, :) Josie

Some of my favorite people are lurkers! Welcome Josie! :hi:
I'm new to reading cozies again after a long absence from them, so the names of authors aren't fresh in my mind, I'm afraid. As soon as I'm done here I'm going to research a few myself, older and newer, and take the long bus ride into the library to check out a few to reacquaint myself with them. I promise to post back about the ones I do find and read though.

I recently read a librarian's blog who praised the book One Bad Apple (http://www.amazon.com/One-Bad-Apple-Orchard-Mystery/dp/0425223043/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218219024&sr=8-1) by Sheila Connolly. That link goes to the book at Amazon so you can see it. I don't want to link to the review because I think it gives too much of the plot away. Grrr...

Anything M.C. Beaton, Sharyn McCrumb (her Missing Susan is really funny), Martha Grimes' Foul Matter is a humorous take on authors and the publishing industry. It's very tongue-in-cheek.

Stormie, your the greatest! I've written down all of your suggestions for my trip to the library. I need to catch up on my cozy reading if I intend to write one. An idea's been bubbling and I can't shake it. It screams cozy. So, this is the very beginning of my novel's birth. To quote the first line in the movie Miss Potter (with Renee Zellweger and Ewan McGregor), "There's something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You can never quite tell where they'll take you." This is one of my top five favorite movie quotes.

[CBumpkin]

I just got back from the library with a modicum of success in what I was looking for. I have three books on hold for when they come in and another I wanted is on order.

I checked out enough to last me two weeks and then it's back to the library. Here's what I got:

BOOKS:

Foul Matter by Martha Grimes - This is the book I'm starting with. (Thanks Stormie!) It starts with a whimper so I hope it works its way up to the bang.
Death of a Dreamer by M.C. Beaton - Also thanks to Stormie!
Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown
"A" is for Alibi by Sue Grafton
The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie

DVDS:

The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes Collection - Disc 3
-- The Illustrious Client
-- The Creeping Man
One Foot in the Grave
-- This is an old BBC Mystery show with senior citizen sleuths. At least that's what it looks like. I love my BBC! (I just don't own a television!)
Summer's Lease
-- Another old BBC mini-drama with Sir John Gielgud. (Just because I wanted to watch it!)

Audio Book on CD:

The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell by Lilian Jackson Braun
-- I can't read her books. I'd read a chapter and completely forget what I'd just read. It's the oddest thing. Many others have the same complaint with her books. But, on audio CD, read by George Guidall, you're in for some great entertainment!

[Josie]

Thanks so much, Stormie. I'll be going to the library to see what I can find

CBumpkin, looks like you picked up quite a few!!!

[stormie]

Foul Matter does start out like that. Read the story as she is writing it: very tongue-in-cheek. She's passing barbs at all the book editors, their assistants, the writers, and the agents, gently.

As for Sharyn McCrumb, my library is very tiny and hasn't even heard of her, yet she's won at least one Edgar. As I said, my favorite is Missing Susan.

And I love most of the M.C.Beaton novels. (Try to get the Agatha Raisin ones and in succesion.)

[CBumpkin]

Foul Matter does start out like that. Read the story as she is writing it: very tongue-in-cheek. She's passing barbs at all the book editors, their assistants, the writers, and the agents, gently.

As for Sharyn McCrumb, my library is very tiny and hasn't even heard of her, yet she's won at least one Edgar. As I said, my favorite is Missing Susan.

And I love most of the M.C.Beaton novels. (Try to get the Agatha Raisin ones and in succesion.)

I caught on to the tongue-in-cheek slighting pretty quickly, which is what helped me get through chapter one!

As for the Missing Susan series, can you please tell me which is the first book in that series? I tried and tried and couldn't find out which one it was!

I tried to find Lawrence Block's, Burglar's Can't Be Choosers but they didn't have it. Block is brilliant and this was his first in the Burglars series. (The library said they had two copies in but we couldn't find them. Grrr...)

An agent told me I'm going about this wrongly, though. She said I should be reading debut novels to find out what agents and editors are looking for today. Reading older novels is fine, but for my purposes, I should be reading more debut novels. Makes sense, doesn't it?

I'll still read all of these, though. I'm an old-fashioned, classic, they-don't-make-them-like-they-used-to kind of guy myself.

[Josie]

I ordered the "Foul Matter" at our library close by.

As for what the agent said to you about reading debut authors, Jack? Absolutely do that. I love seasoned good writers, but the debut authors are definitely giving you the clues what as to what the publishers want to publish now. And of course there is nothing to say they won't be good also. Read a few though.

I have just been sidetracked to write a romantic comedy. So I can catch up on my reading of any new debut authors in the cozy lines.

:idea: Hmm, if I find the some names, I'll put a list on here.

Cheers, Josie

[Andreya]

Well, I love cozies too.. :)

/Can't stand the hardcore grime & bodycount & such.. even Midsommer Nights (the British TV series) is too gruesome... (& too silly/predictable for me - I mean, with mass murders going on, how silly can you be to meet anyone in a secluded place? 'duh')/

Anyway, I digress... My favorite book by Agatha Christie is 'The Man in the Brown Suit', & it's basically an adventure. has me chuckling all the book through too.. (& there's romance! YAY! What's not to like? ;))
A girl goes off into the big world, on a luxury ship, on a trail of a mystery, giving all her inheritance for the ride. It's funny & with lots of memorable lines too.
eg when a (rich) character is shocked at her daring to face the world with only 25 or 40 pounds in her pocket or so & not knowing where she'll be next, she says, 'But that's the fun part.' (my brains are fried so I'm properly not quoting this right, but anyway, gotta love Agatha Christie. except in a few ones when she gets a bit too cartoonish too.. & I only read one Evanovich book, & it seemed a bit too cartoonish too... I mean, I like it quirky but still just-on-the-brink of still-believable! :))
Other Agatha Christe cozies are fun too, Miss Marple books or such sometimes have such funny dialogue or self-proclaimed characters, it's a pleasure to read them for the characters alone! (Like Murder in the vicarage, such fun! the murder itself was a bit of disappointment, but the characters! lol)

Also, I liked Mary Higgings Clark. not for the murder mysteries, not at all, but she does have a good way of weaving together interesting characters & stories, & help you feel 'reassured' (& not scared too much lol). Things like Henning Mankell books or such were mostly a bit too gross for me.. (maybe I should have started with #1 though, lol I read them in random order, possibly started with the gruesomest.) & Minnette Walters just made me depressed!! I don't dare read more gruesome mystery books!! Please, write lighthearted fun!! lol

I would suggest if you want to get published you don't just look at what is published anew, but also new series, new TV shows & films... All that makes popular culture... (At least that's my thinking, lol) So I'm thinking my chick-lit cozy shorts could get published. somewhere. But where? lol
A good idea would be to find a publisher that publishes the sort of thing one writes, &/or an author writing in a similar style, & hunt them down...
Then again I read Evanovich has a family biz & at least manages (or even publishes?) hereself these days...

[Carmy]

I love cozies. Written one, and must start marketing it again.

M. C. Beaton and Rhys Bowen are two of my favourites.