Just Add Water a Hetta Coffey Mystery Q&A @jinxschwartz

Just Add Water (A Hetta Coffey Mystery) Eppie Award

Jinx Schwartz

 

Just Add Water won an Eppie Award in the Mystery category, and has over 350 4 and 5 star reviews on Amazon. Here is what some people wrote:

“I’m a lot older than the Hetta Coffey, and I don’t have a lot in common with her, but I couldn’t put this book down. Jinx Schwartz is a master of character development. You actually feel like you know the people in the book.“

“This is one of the brightest well-written most entertaining series I have come across in sometime. Can’t wait for more.”

“Finally…great dialogue! Smart, sassy and thoroughly entertaining. Hetta is an original and the supporting cast are just as much fun. Going to get the next book now!”

 Eppie Award winner. One of the Top Sellers on Amazon. The one word description for her book today I believe is more a description of herself than the book. Economy destroyer, and scourge of the seas. Meet . . .

Author

Jinx Schwartz

 @jinxschwartz

 

RW: I see this as a dangerous question to ask considering your residence but I’ll put it this way, where were you from before you found your current calling of a home?

JINX: I’m a country girl; the problem is, which country?

I’m a ninth generation Texan who was raised all over the place, including Haiti and Thailand, then traveled the world for study and work.

RW: Who are your favorite authors?

JINX: Larry McMurtry, Nelson DeMille, Lee Child.

RW: What is your favorite beverage to drink, any kind?

JINX: Wine, I guess, although I drink a lot of coffee and ice tea.

RW: What is your escape from writing when you are at that about to explode point?

JINX: I head for a nice long walk.

RW: What is your favorite word?

JINX: Rats.

RW: What is your background in writing, what makes you a writer?

JINX: I have been writing novels for 20 years, with nine published. I guess I just like to entertain people.

RW: What is the title of the book you’re sharing with us today and why did you choose that name?

JINX: The first in my Hetta Coffey series of six is Just Add Water. She’s looking for a lifestyle change, and living on a boat sounds good.

Hetta Coffey is a sassy Texan with a snazzy yacht, and she’s not afraid to use it.

So am I!

RW: What genre does Hetta and her stories fall into?

JINX: Humorous Mystery and Sea Adventures

RW: Why do you write in the genre that you do?

JINX: They say to write what you know, and I have lived on boats for almost thirty years, mostly in Mexico. So that is what I write about.

RW: Tell us a little about Just Add Water.

JINX: Just Add Water, Book 1, introduces the reader to Hetta Coffey. She’s single, pushing forty and looking for something different. So, she buys a yacht and moves aboard, even though she’s never even owned a row boat. But Hetta is not averse to challenge; she’s an engineer who has traveled the world in search of work and men. She’s much more successful with work.

RW: What inspired the creation of Hetta and her first adventure ?

JINX: I was single, my dog died, and I wanted a change. So I bought a yacht. The humorous part of owning a boat with no experience inspired me to share the experience, woven into a greatly embellished tale.

RW: Hetta has been good to you so far. What do you think makes readers connect to Hetta?

JINX: Hetta is liked by both men and women, despite some character traits and bad habits that should not make her anyone’s new best friend. She is independent, adventurous, totally un-PC, but loyal to her friends, and dangerous to her enemies.

RW: What actress do you see as being Hetta?

JINX: A young Bette Midler.

RW: Is there a message intended with Just Add Water?

JINX: My books are meant as pure escapist entertainment, but because of them I have met people in Mexico who tell me the series inspired them to buy a boat and head south. On the other hand, one person accused me of single-handedly ruining the Mexican tourist trade.

RW: Other than the ability to destroy an economy, what did you learn about yourself from writing the first Hetta adventure?

JINX: Writing is very cathartic, and gives a writer a chance to make good on past mistakes. Oh, get even with those who mess with her by writing them into a slow and painful death. Just kidding. Really.

RW: Sum up your book in one word.

JINX: Sassy.

RW: Where do we get your Hetta Coffey Mysteries?

JINX: All of my books are available on Amazon.com.

RW: You have several books, and not just your Hetta Coffey series. Which of the others would you say is your favorite?

JINX: One of my favorite books is Land of Mountains, my Middle Grade/YA novel set in Haiti in the 1950’s. Ten-year-old Texan, Lizbuthann, finds her new country fascinating, even though she’s being stalked by a pesky zombie.

RW: How do people connect with you through all forms of social media?

JINX: I have many new friends on Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo Groups, you name it. Social media is also my main marketing tool other than Book Bub, and it is such a great way to meet new people from all over the world. I feel I know so many of them that when they aren’t on Facebook for awhile I get worried.

Jinx’s Blog: Jinx Schwartz’s Water Writes

Website: JinxSchwartz.com

Amazon: Author Page

Twitter: @jinxschwartz

And people can find me on facebook as well.

RW: Do you currently have agent representation or are you a lone sea wolf?

JINX: I tried the agent route, but it didn’t work out for me. Agents are great if you can get one, but getting one is hard enough, and then it takes way too much time to get a book sold, and even then you are at the mercy of publishers. I am much as an Indie now.

RW: What are you working on right now?

JINX: Book seven in the Hetta Coffey series. No title as yet.

RW: What is your biggest tip for someone to getting published?

I would hope that a new writer has the luck to find a publisher (as I did) since as going on your own from the get-go is fraught with danger. It is too easy to publish a faulty book now, and I had the good fortune to be published by someone who knew the industry. I learned a great deal, even though the publishing company didn’t make it.

If a new writer wants to go Indie, I highly suggest a critique group, and an editor. Learning the basics is so important. Proper grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure are key to a well-written book. I cannot believe how many books I’ve seen out there that are not even punctuated properly. This is the kiss of death to becoming successful in this competitive business.

RW: What book are you reading at this time?

JINX: One of Paul Levin’s, Riptide. I should have added him to my favorite author list.

RW: If you could have written any book that exists, other than your own, what would it be and why?

JINX: Gone With the Wind. No, wait, Roots. No, wait, Lonesome Dove. No, wait…is this a trick question?

 

Now you see why my introduction was so short. I wanted to get to the sassy lady herself and let you see that personality in action. One reason for these interviews and the questions is so you can get to know the personality behind the writing. I think sassy describes a lot more than the Just Add Water. You need to join the thousands of others buying her books. Those great reviews can’t be wrong. Get them today. Get caught up on all of Hetta Coffey’s Mysteries before that 7th is finished.

And as always . . .

Read a Book, Write a Review.

Much Respect

Ronovan

 

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