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In 2004, I was diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer. While
receiving treatments, well-meaning friends arrived laden with gifts and bags of
books. An avid reader, I looked forward
to discovering new authors and genres. That would dovetail beautifully with the
advice given in the cancer literature: Cross-read and expose yourself to new
ideas.
The advice was sound. By reading unfamiliar and challenging material, I
could create new neural pathways in my brain and reduce the likelihood of
developing the dreaded chemo brain.
But as I dipped into the bags overflowing with books, I experienced only
disappointment. I could barely finish reading the first chapter of the
religious, philosophical, historical, and comedic books. I experienced the same frustration when I
browsed through library and bookshelf stacks.
A friend suggested cozies...those delightful mysteries that include a
bloodless crime and contain little violence, sex, or coarse language.
Intrigued, I borrowed my first cozy and read it in one sitting.
I was hooked!
A voracious reader, I read two to three cozies each week. They were the
perfect companion while waiting for treatments, sitting in the chemo chair, or
recovering afterward. I was fully engaged in the storylines but not horrified
by the details. I was also getting a full brain workout: my right brain enjoyed following the
characters and settings of unique fictional worlds while my left brain welcomed
the challenge of solving the ‘who-done-it.’
Toward the end of treatments, I came up with a storyline for my own
cozy.
What if...A woman wins a $19
million lottery and then returns to her hometown, only to find herself the
primary suspect in the murders of four blondes. Can she prove her innocence and
solve this case before it’s too late?
I completed the first draft of A
Season for Killing Blondes during my cancer year. Three years later, I
revisited the manuscript and then started the query process. In 2014, Johanna Melaragno of The Wild Rose
Press offered me a contract. A Season for
Killing Blondes was released in June 2015.
While awaiting publication, I came up with a premise for Too Many Women in the Room, Book 2 of
the Gilda Greco Mystery Series. It was released on May 19 of this year.
Logline: 8 Women → 8 Reasons to Kill a Lecherous Photographer. One Woman Succeeds.
Blurb
When Gilda Greco invites her closest friends to a
VIP dinner, she plans to share David Korba’s signature dishes and launch their
joint venture— Xenia, an innovative Greek restaurant near Sudbury, Ontario.
Unknown to Gilda, David has also invited Michael Taylor, a lecherous
photographer who has throughout the past three decades managed to annoy all the
women in the room. One woman follows Michael to a deserted field for his
midnight run and stabs him in the jugular.
Gilda’s life is awash with complications as she
wrestles with a certain detective’s commitment issues and growing doubts about
her risky investment in Xenia. Frustrated, Gilda launches her own investigation
and uncovers decades-old secrets and resentments that have festered until they
explode into untimely death. Can Gilda outwit a killer bent on killing again?
Book
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Bio
In 2008, Joanne Guidoccio retired from a 31-year
teaching career and launched a second act that tapped into her creative side.
Slowly, a writing practice emerged. Her articles and book reviews were
published in newspapers, magazines, and online. When she tried her hand at
fiction, she made reinvention a recurring theme in her novels and short
stories. A member of Crime Writers of Canada, Sisters in Crime, and Romance
Writers of America, Joanne writes cozy mysteries, paranormal romance, and
inspirational literature from her home base of Guelph, Ontario.
Where to find Joanne...
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