I’m surprised by how many authors aren’t big readers. Both reading and writing take up a tremendous amount of time. So, it can be hard to designate time for both. But Marie Anders is a writer who also loves to read. And taking that time to devote to reading has surely helped her to become a better writer. Below is my interview with Anders about her crime novels.
About the author and books
Author links (links will open in a new tab)
Genre: Crime
Links to buy
Death by Truffles – Neuner’s First Case
The Finnish Sock – Neuner’s Second Case
The English versions of my other two novels will be published later this year.
Book summaries
Death by Truffles
Marc Bergmann, known to enjoy the company of women a little too much, is found dead on a park bench. His downfall? Poisoned chocolate truffles.
The Finnish Sock
Two well-known scientists are killed at a Medical Congress in Salzburg. Inspector Neuner and his team are bewildered by the signature of the murderer. What does a colourful hand-knitted sock have to do with all of this?
Book excerpts
Death by Truffles
Near the Salzach river, in the beautiful city of Salzburg, Marc Bergmann, the town’s gigolo, is found dead on a park bench. Marc Bergmann, the shady lawyer, was married, had a fiancée and various lovers and connections to the mob. Soon it is clear that poisoned chocolate truffles sealed Marc’s faith. The more Quentin Neuner and his team delve into the case, the stranger things get. When Neuner’s childhood sweetheart turns up, the case takes a sudden unexpected turn.
The Finnish Sock
During an International Medical Congress in Salzburg, a well-known surgeon and scientist, Doctor Thomas Steinmetz, is mysteriously killed. When Inspector Quentin Neuner examines the corpse, he notices something he has never seen before. The victim’s right foot had been dressed in a colourful hand-knitted sock, and his shoe nicely draped next to the body. Was this a sign? Or the signature of the killer? If so, what is the killer trying to flag up? In the course of the first interrogations, the killer strikes again in broad daylight and right under Quentin Neuner’s nose. The investigators quickly discover similarities between the two victims. Was it their research that sealed their fate?
Talking Shop
What is a fun or strange source of inspiration that ended up in your book?
Natives of Salzburg have a reputation for being reserved, cold, aloof, and sometimes arrogant. Malicious tongues even claim that this could be due to the weather since it rains quite often. Well, sometimes even I think there might be something to it.
My protagonists are the exact opposite of the described “Salzburg native.” They are warm-hearted, help each other, and above all, they have a sense of humour. Although they have rough edges, of course, they are consistently sympathetic and empathetic people with whom you would like to be friends.
Who is on your Mt. Rushmore of great writers?
I’ve read so many good books throughout my life that it’s hard to choose a favourite. I like to alternate between “heavy” and “light” when it comes to books. I think Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen are great. I also like Umberto Eco and Agatha Christie for crime novels and Nicholas Sparks for romance.
Do you have a writing ritual, odd habits, or superstitions?
My favourite time to write is at night when everything is quiet, and everyone is fast asleep. I’m both a morning person as well as a night person, but I’m most creative at night. For me, writing is similar to painting. It does not happen on command. Sometimes whole chapters flow in no time, and sometimes I get up after half a page and go to sleep.
Are any of your characters inspired by real life people?
Sometimes. If you go through the world with open eyes and ears, you see and hear the most exciting stories. Stories that you can eventually work into a book.
What is the most fun part about writing? The most difficult?
The best thing about creative work is that, apart from publishing deadlines, you do not have any fixed times. Somehow, as an author, you are always working.
The most challenging part about writing is the constant “fear” of not meeting your own standards and possibly disappointing the reader.
What if scenarios
If your book ever becomes a movie and you get final say over the cast, which actors would you hire to play your characters?
I would hire unknown theatre actors. Theatre actors are great, mainly because they do not have airs and graces yet. I would not want to sell my stories/movies just because a celebrity actor plays the lead role.
A wealthy reader buys 100 copies of your book and tells you to hand them out to anyone you wish. Who do you give them to?
I would give them to libraries. Like this, it would multiply the readers and reach people who really like to read.
Your favorite character that you’ve written comes to life for one day. What do you do together for 24 hours?
We would bake some cinnamon rolls, roam around the city of Salzburg, meet all the other book characters, and have a great time over an excellent dinner.
You’re offered a contract to rewrite your book in another genre. Which genre do you choose and why?
I would select romance since there are already some minor romantic entanglements in the book.
You’re given $10,000 to spend on marketing for your book. How do you spend it?
I would ask a marketing specialist to develop a solid plan and then discuss any further procedures.
Your book becomes a best seller. What do you do next?
Continue to write the next book.
Just for Fun
Your favorite childhood book or story.
All books by Enyd Blyton and the Bill Bergson, Master Detective series by Astrid Lindgreen
Favorite time of/part of your day.
Teatime/chocolate milk time at four o’clock is part of my day – a 30 minutes pause I take just for myself
Old books or new books?
Any book – as long as it is a book.
An activity you stopped doing but would like to start doing again.
Tap dancing
Celebrity you’d want to be friends with.
The Queen of England. She is a remarkable woman and knows all the other celebrities, from politics, show business, music, etc.
When time travel is achieved, do you go forward or backward?
I would not want to change the past, so definitely forward.
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Great interview! We love of the question about the favorite character coming to life for the day.