Judy Moore writes primarily mysteries and thrillers, as well as lighter family fiction. A longtime news writer, editor, and magazine feature writer, she has a master's degree in journalism and was a college journalism professor. Her fiction and nonfiction work has been published in numerous national publications, and her novels are published by BTGN publishers. A lifelong Florida resident, she is a former tennis pro and sports writer, so her stories sometimes have a sports backdrop. Her novel "Somebody Killed the Cart Girl" is a golf mystery, and her "Murder in Vail" is set on the ski slopes of Colorado. Her Christmas anthology "Christmas Interrupted," contains three popular novellas: "Airport Christmas," "The Holiday House Sitter," and "The Hitchhiker on Christmas Eve." An earlier novella, "Birds of Prey," and her new novelette "Football Blues," are also available on Amazon.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Q: Can you tell us a little about yourself to start?
I grew up in Miami playing competitive tennis. I was a highly ranked junior player, played for Florida State University, traveled in Europe, and later became a teaching pro. While at FSU, I became interested in journalism and went on to get a master’s degree in journalism at University of Florida. I worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine feature writer, and editor of national business publications. Because of my tennis background, I also wrote about tennis for several years, as well as other sports. Now, I’m at the point in my life where I can write what I really want to write—fiction. I grew up reading Agatha Christie and have always loved reading and watching mysteries. I’ve written two mystery novels and five novellas and have recently finished a third novel, a thriller that will be coming out soon.
Q: How are you feeling now that your latest book is out & on tour?
It always feels wonderful to have a book finished and published. My latest, Murder in Vail, is the story of a wealthy family who become snowbound with a killer in their midst. It’s coming out in audio soon. Because of my journalism background, I write fairly quickly and go at it pretty hard when I’m writing. It takes me about two months to write a full-length novel. Then I take a break for a few months before tackling another one. My life is not my own when I’m writing. But I prefer to do it that way. Once I start, I don’t want to stop until I finish. Then, I can relax and enjoy life for a while before jumping in again. After about two months, I can’t wait to get back to the computer.
Q: Out of all of your books, do you have a favorite character or couple?
I have several favorite characters. I love coming up with oddball characters, and I have at least one really unfiltered character in each book I write. But my favorite character is probably my 11-year-old matchmaker Lily in Airport Christmas. She and her two brothers are snowed-in by themselves at the Denver airport for three days over Christmas. She’s a compulsive matchmaker and is unrelenting in making matches of stranded single passengers.
Q: Are you currently working on a new book at this time?
I’ve just finished writing my longest novel yet, a thriller called “The Mother-in-Law.” It will be out later this year. I told my son-in-law that he will appreciate me much more after reading this book. She’s something else!
Q: How do your stories & characters develop?
I start with the victim and the killer and the why. Then I start masking the killer and the why, and spread other storylines around the crime to confuse the reader and throw them off the trail. The key for me is keeping the reader interested. To bore them is the ultimate sin. I like setting a scene so the reader can feel and see each scene, but I’m going to do that fairly quickly. I can’t stand reading books where the author spends a page describing a tree. I think that’s self-indulgent of the writer and torture for the reader. I would never dream of doing that to someone who bought my book to have a pleasurable reading experience.
Q: Do you have favorite author whose books you love to read?
I have a couple of favorite authors. Carl Hiaasen is probably the first. He’s so funny and so out there. What an imagination. The other is Michael Connelly who writes fabulous crime dramas, including the Harry Bosch detective novels and The Lincoln Lawyer series. They’re both Floridians and attended University of Florida’s journalism school where I went.
Q: What is your favorite genre to read & write?
I love to read and write mysteries, especially whodunits. I expect good dialogue and a lot of humor as well. That’s my goal when I write too. Down-to-earth characters who sometimes find themselves interacting with some pretty zany, unpredictable people.
Q: If you could have dinner with anyone in the world who would it be & why?
This probably sounds pretty shallow, but I think I’d enjoy having dinner with Julia Louis Dreyfus. The woman was on Saturday Night Live, Seinfeld, and Veep, three classic comedies that have really reflected our culture in the last quarter century. I’ll bet she really has some really good stories to tell. She’s so funny and has such good timing. I just fall on the floor laughing at Veep.
Q: Did you always want to be a writer? If not what did you want to be?
I never thought about being a writer. I was really good at math, like off the charts, so I always thought I would do something with math. I was one of only two girls selected for advanced calculus classes in college. But after six quarters of calculus, I couldn’t take it anymore. It didn’t seem practical to the real world. I changed majors and started taking journalism classes. It just felt right and writing came so naturally.
Q: Do you read all the reviews for your book(s)?
Yes, I enjoy hearing what people have to say and looking for ways I can improve. Most of the reviews are good, thank goodness, and it definitely gives a boost to my day to read a good one. The occasional bad ones aren’t fun, but I force myself to shrug them off. I learned a long time ago that you can never please everyone.
Q: Which do you prefer paperback, hardback or ebooks & why?
I definitely prefer paperbacks. They’re lighter to carry around and more flexible to read than hardbacks. I like reading a paper book, so I don’t care too much for reading on Kindle. I read outside a lot, and sometimes it’s harder to see the words clearly outside. I work on the computer most of the day, so when I’m reading for pleasure, I like being able to hold the book and turn the pages. (But thank goodness a lot of people like to read on Kindle! I sell a lot of ebooks.)
Q: What are you currently reading? Are you enjoying it? What format is it in (ebook, hardback or paperback) and who is the author?
I just finished reading “The Husband’s Secret” by Liana Moriarty in paperback. She’s a new find, an Australian author who does wonderful character studies with a little mystery involved too. I also read her “Big Little Lies,” which was made into an HBO series. The book is so much better than the television series. I usually love HBO, but they really hacked this one.
Q: Of all of the books you have written, do you have a favorite & why?
My favorite is “Murder in Vail,” the story of a wealthy widow whose spoiled children and their spouses come home to Vail for the holidays. They become snowbound together and the bodies start piling up. I love this book because each character has such a unique personality and many of them show a lot of growth during the book. And, there are a few twists and turns along the way that make it very hard to figure out who the villain is.
Q: When you aren't writing what do you do to relax and have fun?
Being a livelong Floridian, I love to swim and play golf. I don’t play much tennis anymore, but I play a mean game of ping pong. I love any kind of word game. Boggle and Word with Friends are my favorites. And I’ve been known to binge watch an HBO series or two. I love to travel too, and take at least three or four trips a year, the most recent being to the Caribbean, Spain, and Ireland. My favorite trip ever was to Iceland. I’ll definitely have to include it in a book someday.
How about a little of This or That:
Coffee or Tea? Tea
Chocolate or Vanilla? Vanilla
Kinky or Sweet? Sweet
Tall, dark & handsome or blonde, surfer type? Tall, dark & handsome
Dine in or Dine out? Dine out
Sunset or Sunrise? Sunset
Steak or Chicken? Chicken
Cats or Dogs? Dogs
Summer or Winter? Neither, Spring
Shower or Bath? Bath
Beer or Wine? Wine
Scary or Comedy? Comedy
Biker or Billionaire? Billionaire
Rock or Country? Rock
THANK YOU JUDY. I LOVED GETTING TO KNOW MORE ABOUT YOU AND I AM EXCITED FOR YOUR NEXT BOOK. IF ANY OF MY READERS HAVE NOT READ ANY OF JUDY'S BOOKS, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU CHECK THEM OUT. THEY ARE REALLY GOOD.
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