Writers Who’ve Influenced (and Entertained) Me

By Linda Lovely

Over the years—okay, decades—I’ve loved hundreds of mystery, romantic suspense, and thriller novels penned by a host of female and male authors. However, I have to credit four women authors for having the greatest influence on my approach to developing characters and plots for crime novels. These authors are Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky, Susan Isaacs, and Janet Evanovich. 

Independent Heroines Succeeding in ‘Male’ Careers. Both Sue Grafton and Sara Paretsky ably demonstrated that heroines could be whizzes at jobs traditionally reserved for men.  Sue Grafton’s character, Kinsey Millhone. and Paretsky’s character, V.I. Warshawski, are both private investigators, PIs, capable of going toe-to-toe with bad guys without a male protector. They are mentally and physically tough. Unlike the heroines in crime novels in the Agatha Christie tradition, these modern heroines aren’t old-maid snoops, who solve mysteries by flitting around the edges of a case asking questions that “real” professionals considered meddlesome.

Like Sue Grafton & Sara Paretsky's
heroines, Marley Clark can go
toe-to-toe with villains.

Heroines Millhone and Warshawski helped assure me that the heroines in my novels could thrive in any occupation. As a result, my Marley Clark, the heroine in my Dear Killer and No Wake Zone mysteries, is a retired military intelligence officer; Nexi Ketts, the heroine in Dead Line, is a forensic accountant, and Riley Reid, a former FBI agent is security director for a university in my romantic suspense novel Dead Hunt. These ladies run marathons, know martial arts, and kick butt. Yet that doesn’t make them any less sexy and attractive.  

‘Older’ Wisecracking Heroines. Susan Isaacs’ heroine in After All These Years, Rosie Myers holds down a traditional female occupation—she teaches English literature. But Rosie breaks with a variety of mystery tropes for heroines. For starters, she’s older. I don’t remember her exact age, but she’s been married 25 years, so she’s around 50. However, age has only sharpened her razor wit and perspective. Yep, she can feel sorry for herself when her husband dumps her for a younger woman. Nonetheless, when she becomes the chief suspect in his murder, she quickly bounces back and shows her gumption again and again. I often found Rosie’s interior dialogues hysterical, including her thought process when she tried to decide whether or not she should pull out the knife sticking in her husband’s chest. She knows her strengths and can laugh at her weaknesses.

When I started playing with the idea of writing novels, I was over fifty, and I loved the idea of giving a fellow baby boomer one of the lead roles that are often reserved for younger women, who don’t have their elders’ knowledge and haven’t learned that laughing at their own foibles can improve one’s mental health. My Marley Clark character is 52 and like Rosie can laugh at herself—but is still quite capable of outwitting the villains.

Zany Sidekicks & An Ensemble Cast. Who knew Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum humorous mystery series, which started out with One for the Money would now boast 24 titles. The most recent is Hard Core Twenty-Four. Evanovich is a brilliant comedic writer, but I doubt her series could have enjoyed this longevity if she hadn’t populated her books with an ensemble case of zany characters. My favorite is Stephanie’s sidekick Lula, a reformed, oversized prostitute who hasn’t reformed how she dresses or some of her views. Lula’s various attempts at dieting are hilarious, and she’s a perfect foil for Stephanie in action scenes.  My second most favorite character is outrageous Grandma Mazur, who considers visitations and funerals a primary entertainment, and isn’t afraid to pack heat. 

My Brie Hooker Mysteries
feature an ensemble cast of
colorful characters, an idea
prompted by Janet Evanovich's
Stephanie Plum novels.

I’ve attempted to follow Evanovich’s lead in creating a diverse cast for my new humorous Brie Hooker Mystery Series. While Brie is a vegan, she lives with her Aunt Eva, a dedicated and somewhat cantankerous carnivore on a 400-goat dairy. Brie’s best friend, Mollye, owns a woo-woo store that sells all manner of supernatural objects and herbs in addition to her unique pottery. Mollye also does palm and tarot readings. Then there are Brie’s suitors—a legal moonshiner and a veterinarian. Picked Off, my newest release, also features a colorful former Las Vegas dancer who is now the owner of a pro-football team after her older husband dropped dead.

Making Ideas & Characters Your Own. I think all of my characters are unique. They’ve sprung from my imagination. But I doubt they would be as interesting if I hadn’t loved and laughed with these authors’ characters before I began creating my own.