A Wicked Welcome to Traci Wilton

I am delighted to welcome Traci Wilton, aka Traci Hall and Patrice Wilton, to the blog today. They have a new series that debuts on Tuesday with Mrs. Morris and the Ghost. More information about the series is down below, but first let’s hear about writing a book together!

Co Writing a Cozy Mystery Series

By Traci Wilton, aka Traci Hall and Patrice Wilton

Thank you so much for having us on your Wicked blog—this is our first foray into writing cozy mysteries. Before this Patrice wrote romance, and I was all over the board with YA, medieval romances, contemporary romances, coming of age, non-fiction, and historical western romances. We’ve been critique partners since 2003 and so we know each other’s style very well, and most importantly, we trust each other with that vulnerable part of ourselves that you have to show when putting words to paper to create a story. Together we are nearing a hundred published works.

We get asked all the time—HOW do you do it?

A plot is key when working together so that you both are literally on the same page when it comes to writing. Each book gets easier because we know the characters…Charlene is family, as are Jack, (the ghost) Sam, (the detective) Minnie, (the housekeeper) and Silva, the cat. We know the house: how it’s decorated, and where Jack likes to sit before the fire, and how much Charlene loves the big oak out back, and the wooden swing in the tree. How the kitchen fills with the scent of whatever delicious thing Minnie is baking.

Charlene wanted a family but wasn’t able to have one, and now her husband is dead. She’s starting over in Salem and rebuilding a home for herself and her guests. That is what drives her.

I think that sense of searching for a place to make our own resonates with people, because it’s something we all want at heart.

We chose to make our detective very hunky. Jack is also incredibly handsome, and jealous of the men in Charlene’s life. He can’t do anything about it but help keep her safe, which is what Sam wants for her too.

Another thing that really helped us with writing together was going to Salem and doing all of the things that Charlene would do as a new bed and breakfast owner to get to know the town and share events with her guests. Salem is quaint and filled with historical tidbits that will allow us to create stories for as long as we have readers! Practically every building is supposedly haunted though we didn’t see anything spooky, just fun thrills and lots of possibilities over what could be…we stayed at the haunted Hawthorne Hotel, toured the centuries-old buildings around the wharf, took a night guided tour of the Old Burying Point cemetery, and much more. The folks are so friendly and welcoming that we highly recommend a trip to Salem if you haven’t been. Too bad you can’t really stay with Charlene, at Charlene’s Bed and Breakfast, the most elegant B & B in town. We know she would take very good care of you….and if you see something from the corner of your eye, it just might be Jack.

Boo!

Thanks again for hosting us for our Mrs. Morris and the Ghost debut! Next year Mrs. Morris and the Witch will be available, and we have audio too.

You can check out our website www.traciwilton.com for more information and updates for the next release.

Traci Wilton

Traci Wilton is the pseudonym of Traci Hall and Patrice Wilton.

From contemporary seaside romances to cozy mysteries, USA Today bestselling author Traci Hall writes stories that captivate her readers. As a hybrid author with fifty published works, Ms. Hall has a favorite story for everyone. Mystery lovers, be on the lookout for her Salem B&B Mystery series, co-written as Traci Wilton, and her Scottish Shire series, which takes place in the seaside town of Nairn, as Traci Hall. Whether it’s her ever popular By the Sea series or a fun who-done-it, Traci finds her inspiration in sunny South Florida, by living right near the ocean.

New York Times, bestselling author, Patrice Wilton knew from the age of twelve that she wanted to write books that would take the reader to faraway places. She was born in Vancouver, Canada, and had a great need to see the world that she had read about.Patrice became a flight attendant for seventeen years and traveled the world. At the age of forty she sat down to write her first book—in longhand! Her interests include tennis, golf, and writing stories for women of all ages.She has more than forty books published on Amazon, and is best known as a popular romance author. She is especially proud of her best-selling contemporary romance series, Paradise Cove, and Heavenly Christmas and the Wounded Warriors. Co-writing with Traci Hall, they have assumed the name Traci Wilton for the Salem B&B mystery series published with Kensington.

Mrs. Morris and the Ghost

Charlene Morris knew Salem, Massachusetts had a spooky reputation. But when she decided to open her B&B there, she expected guests—not ghosts…

A grieving young widow, Charlene needed a new start—so she bought a historic mansion, sight unseen, and drove from Chicago to New England to start turning it into a bed-and-breakfast. On her first night in the house, she awakens to find a handsome man with startling blue eyes in her bedroom. Terror turns to utter disbelief when he politely introduces himself as Jack Strathmore—and explains that he used to live here—when he was alive. He firmly believes that someone pushed him down the stairs three years ago, and he won’t be able to leave until someone figures out who. If Charlene wants to get her business up and running in time for the Halloween tourist rush, and get this haunting houseguest out of the way, she’ll have to investigate. Though truth be told, this ghost is starting to grow on her . . .