Larissa Reinhart loves small town characters, particularly sassy women with a penchant for trouble. Still Life In Brunswick Stew (May 2013) is the second in the Cherry Tucker Mystery Series. The first, Portrait of a Dead Guy, is a 2012 Daphne du Maurier finalist, a 2012 The Emily finalist, and a 2011 Dixie Kane Memorial winner. Larissa lives near Atlanta with her minions and Cairn Terrier, Biscuit. Visit her website, her Facebook page, or find her chatting with the Little Read Hens on Facebook.
MTAR: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Larissa Reinhart: First, thanks so much for having me on your blog and for the opportunity to chat! I’m a wife and mom to two young girls, and we live near Atlanta, Georgia, with our Cairn Terrier, Biscuit. In the past, I’ve taught high school history and English in Japan, but now I write and do “mom stuff.”
MTAR: What do you do when you are not writing?
Larissa Reinhart: Mostly act as fourth grade room mom, activity chauffeur, and washing machine operator. I try to sneak reading and naps in when I can.
MTAR: You’ve said living in Japan and longing for small town life in Georgia planted the idea of your novels. Why did your return to Georgia for your father’s funeral get your characters off the ground?
Larissa Reinhart: You do good research! At the time of my dad’s death we were living in Japan and I was writing another story, actually a New Adult paranormal set in Georgia, full of angst and passion. Cherry Tucker, who is about un-angsty as you can get, kept speaking to me. Funny scenes from her life would pop up in my mind. I think I needed the comedic relief from my grief. I don’t know how it happened, but I kept picturing this artist having to paint a coffin portrait and I knew the dead guy had been murdered. I’m from a small town so those three weeks spent at home after the funeral nurtured that story.
MTAR: In other interviews you’ve said that you didn’t pick your genre, that your characters do. How does your writing style of letting your characters determine their story impact your novels?
Larissa Reinhart: My stories are character driven. It’s almost a clockwork method. I take these characters, give them an incident, and set them in motion. At the end, I find out what happens. However, that means there’s constant rewriting involved, usually as I’m writing. Hopefully, it means the character’s reactions to plot twists are natural.
MTAR: What lead you to choose Cherry’s occupation as a freelance artist?
Larissa Reinhart: Honestly, I’m not sure. She just popped into my brain one day. I have a limited background in art. I began graduate school in art history and dabbled as an art major for a short while. I love art, so it was probably a subconscious choice. However, I also like the idea of the sophisticated artist as a small town hick. Most artists I know aren’t pretentious, although they’re shown that way in TV and movies.
MTAR: Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?
Larissa Reinhart: I’m really blessed to have been surrounded by supportive people at every step. I started writing again while we were living in Japan and my daughters were suddenly in school full time. That gave me time to write in a vacuum. I studied what I could about writing and publishing online. When I got back I had two manuscripts; one was Portrait of a Dead Guy. A good friend put me in touch with another friend, a published author. She put me on track to get involved in contests and national writing organizations like Sisters in Crime and Romance Writers of America. I met more writers through Georgia Romance Writers and Kiss of Death. Through their support, I found my publisher and queried.
MTAR: Can you tell us about your upcoming book? Where is Cherry headed next?
Larissa Reinhart: Still Life In Brunswick Stew is the second Cherry Tucker book and releases May 21. I appreciate your review! I’m finishing the third, Hijack in Abstract, which is scheduled for a November release. Hijack brings Cherry into a tenuous relationship with Max Avtaikin, the local backroom poker tycoon and bingo racketeer. I also have a Cherry Tucker prequel novella appearing in the mystery anthology, The Heartache Motel, coming out in December. All three mysteries int he anthology take place at the dumpy, Elvis-loving Heartache Motel in Memphis. Todd and Cherry stop in Memphis to help Todd’s cousin on their way to Vegas, so it’s a prequel to Portrait of a Dead Guy. That was one was a real hoot to write!
MTAR: What was your favorite chapter (or scene) to write and why?
Larissa Reinhart: In Portrait, it was the hot wing scene. The tension between Luke and Cherry had been building and having their romantic interlude interrupted over an argument about who was going to eat the last hot wing tickled me. And the subsequent interruption by the killer and their reactions to it was fun to write, too. In Still Life, I loved her scenes with Hunter, the kid from a truly dysfunctional family. He gave Cherry an opportunity to show her softer side and shine a small mirror onto Cherry’s rough past.
MTAR: How did you come up with the title for your next book?
Larissa Reinhart: I’d like to use different art themes in the titles, but came up with Hijack in Abstract before I had written the book. It was based on an idea about a hijack. Luckily it worked, because the story is more complicated than a simple hijacking and Cherry has to puzzle out seemingly unrelated incidents that all connect in the end to a bigger crime. So it turned out to be an abstraction. (Whew!)
MTAR: Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?
Larissa Reinhart: I like underdogs. My parents were teachers, but my very small hometown is mostly populated with blue collar workers and farmers. Salt of the earth, my dad used to say. I’d be very happy to continue to write from their perspective. There’s a lot of people with rough hands and tough spines who live interesting lives.
MTAR: What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author?
Larissa Reinhart: That’s a stumper! Most criticism is helpful. Not everyone is going to like what I write. But I try to listen to what’s useful and learn from it. When you take art classes, you have to tack your work to the wall and listen to a class critique of it. At first it’s humiliating, but you realize everyone has to go through it and you become better for it.
MTAR: What has been the best compliment?
Larissa Reinhart: When readers take the time to seek me out on Facebook or email me. I’m so humbled by that.
MTAR: Do you have any advice to give to aspiring writers? Any resources that you’ve found particularly helpful others can use?
Larissa Reinhart: I have found that joining national writing groups to be extremely helpful. If you can’t go to local chapters, many meet online. I’m publicity chair for RWA Kiss of Death, a mystery and suspense group, and we meet through a yahoo loop. You can get advice on all matter of writing, publishing, and marketing, as well as get help with research. However, I like the camaraderie. It’s important to find people who are going through the same challenges. Publishing’s a tough business and you need the support.
MTAR: What book are you reading now?
Larissa Reinhart: I’m reading Terri L. Austin’s manuscript for her third book in the Rose Strickland mystery series, Diner Impossible. It’s hilarious. As soon as I finish it, I’m starting Board Stiff by Kendel Lynn, another Henery Press writer and the first in her series. Board Stiff releases next week and it just arrived at my house yesterday!
MTAR: Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members.
Larissa Reinhart: Kiss of Death.
MTAR: Do you see writing as a career?
Larissa Reinhart: I can’t imagine not writing. I don’t know if I’ll get rich, but it keeps me off the streets. Actually, I rarely leave the house…
MTAR: Your interest in writing started at a very young age and continued until college. What helped you overcome having not written for so many years?
Larissa Reinhart: Reading. When I wasn’t writing I probably read two or three books a week, unless I was in a teaching period with a lot of grading. I read a variety of genres, although I stick with fiction. We lived in Japan three times and books in English were hard to get, but I could buy the Penguin classic collections, so I read a lot of classics.
MTAR: Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Larissa Reinhart: Clothes. I have a limited clothing imagination. If I could, everyone would wear flip flops, nondescript t-shirts, and jeans. Cherry wears unique hand embellished clothes. Why did I do that? I’m glad Pinterest was invented because I search the boards for her clothing inspiration.
MTAR: Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?
Larissa Reinhart: You might as well ask me which of my children is my favorite. You’d have to put Mary Stuart, Barbara Michaels, Agatha Christie, C.S. Lewis, and P.G. Wodehouse in a cage match. I’ll take the winner. All of those writers have wonderful timing in suspense and humor, and created indelible characters. I have been reading all of them since elementary school and will probably always reread their books. These are the authors I turn to when I’m having a bad day.
MTAR: Who designed the covers?
Larissa Reinhart: My editor, Kendel Flaum. She’s incredibly talented.
MTAR: What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Larissa Reinhart: The ending. I’m serious. I hate ending books.