Readers can expect fast-paced, bingeable mysteries filled with small-town secrets, plenty of magic, found family, and twists and red herrings along the way. I love writing relatable heroines, close-knit communities, and recurring characters who have lives and stories that continue long after the mystery is solved.

The mystery is always at the heart of my books. Magic can play a large role, but it's another tool in my sleuth's investigative arsenal, not an easy answer to whodunit. There are still clues to uncover, suspects to question, motives to untangle, and a murderer to catch.

Each book features its own mystery with a complete resolution, while a larger mystery unfolds in the background. Because those clues, relationships, and storylines build from book to book, my series are best enjoyed in order. Each series ultimately builds toward a capstone book, where that overarching mystery comes to the forefront and questions woven throughout the series are finally answered.

You can also expect strong friendships, complicated families, and slow-burn romance developing alongside the mysteries. You won't find graphic violence on the page, but that doesn't mean my sleuths are safe. When the clues finally come together and the killer realizes they've been caught, you can expect plenty of suspense before the mystery reaches its cozy conclusion.

The world can be dark enough already. I love the comfort of cozy mysteries, where victims get justice, the bad guys are caught, and even when something terrible happens, there's a community ready to come together afterward. Also, after a lifetime of loving fantasy and playing TTRPG characters who wield magic, I can't seem to write a world without a little magic in it. Why should my gaming characters get to have all the fun?

I rarely know how a murder was committed until I know who committed it. I'm a plotter by nature, so I don't write the first word of a book until the entire story is outlined. My first step is figuring out the people involved: the victim, the killer, the suspects, and the witnesses. Once I understand who they are, why the killer did it, and, just as importantly, why everyone else looks suspicious, the method usually falls into place.

Of course, years spent binge-watching shows like Law & Order: SVU, Criminal Minds, and NCIS probably helped build my internal murder-mystery framework. Method, motive, and opportunity are at the heart of a good mystery, and apparently I spent all those hours watching crime shows preparing for my future career as a cozy mystery author.

Yes. Yes it does.

Being an insurance adjuster requires a surprisingly broad, if often surface-level, knowledge of everything from construction and heavy equipment to human behavior and all the strange ways things can go wrong. It also means spending a lot of time asking questions, sorting through conflicting stories, and figuring out what actually happened. All of that inevitably finds its way into my mysteries.

Sometimes it's obvious, like giving one of my sleuths a career in insurance. Other times, it's a random bit of knowledge I've picked up over the years that suddenly becomes the perfect clue, red herring, or way to commit a fictional murder. Apparently, claims adjusting and mystery writing have more overlap than you might expect.

One of the reasons I love cozy mysteries is the same reason I love romance: I want a happy ending. My sleuths are well-rounded characters with lives that extend beyond solving murders, and I want them to find happiness there, too.

Romance develops slowly across each series, giving relationships plenty of time to grow alongside the mysteries. You can expect kissing, casual affection, and hints of intimacy, but nothing spicy happens on the page. The romance is an important part of my characters' lives, but the mystery always remains at the heart of the story.

Nope! Point Pleasant is entirely fictional, although I've taken inspiration from several of the charming small towns scattered around the Puget Sound. Geographically, it sits very close to where Clinton, Washington, is located, which is why I may have cough rerouted the Mukilteo ferry for my own nefarious author purposes.

What I really wanted to capture was the atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest. I love the moody weather, the water and ferries, and the fact that you rarely have to travel far from a city before finding yourself surrounded by forest. There's something about walking through a picturesque town like Port Angeles on a gray, misty day that makes it very easy for me to imagine a place like Point Pleasant.

The close-knit community is a little more wishful thinking on my part. I've always loved the idea of a town where people know one another, local businesses are gathering places, and running into a familiar face is part of everyday life. Point Pleasant lets me combine the PNW I love with the kind of cozy community I've always wanted to find. So you won't see it on a map, but hopefully it feels like somewhere you could.

It’s a toss-up between Megan’s ability to talk to animals through her enchantment magic and Kim’s ability to keep the people she cares about safe. I think talking to animals probably wins.

I’ve always wanted to be able to tell my pets that I love them and know they actually understand me. And, on a more practical level, being able to explain why they need to go to the vet would be incredibly useful. Mister is normally a very sweet boy, but the moment a veterinarian tries to give him a checkup, he can transform into a tiny furry agent of chaos. A little magical diplomacy would go a long way.

Tea, all day long. Maybe it’s the time I spent living in England, but I love a good cup of tea. Morning, afternoon, curled up with a book, or working on a particularly stubborn plot problem, there’s rarely a bad time for a cup.

BOTH! Why would I ever want to choose between the cuteness? All fluffs (and non-fluffs) alike are worthy of cuddles. My own household has plenty of both, and I wouldn't have it any other way.