Let read her Bio and then go to her interview.
#Interviews, #Interviewsaroundtheglobe,
#NRC,
Why Are Baking Contestants Disappearing?Mysteries
have a way of following Fannie Miller, so when she makes it into the
finals of the Tuscarawas County Baking Contest and contestants start
disappearing, she calls on her old friend Foster Bates, a retired cop
and part-time private investigator. Could it be that other
finalists—like the couple on verge of divorce who need the prize money. .
.or the three Beiler sisters, always in a huddle whispering—are somehow
responsible for these disappearances, thinning out the competition? One
thing is certain—Foster and Fannie will stay on the case until the end,
and everyone involved will learn something important about baking
contests, mystery solving, and life.
New York Times
Bestselling Author Wanda E. Brunstetter and Emmy-Nominated Author
Martha Bolton have teamed up to deliver a delightful whodunit from
Ohio's Amish country.
Can you give a brief summary of your writing career? What are some of your favorite aspects of writing?
My favorite aspect of writing is in the process. Even though it is a lot of work, I have never tired of it. I love getting new ideas and then knowing when it's time for that idea to start flourishing. You just know the moment when it's all going to come together. After that, it's about polishing, adding humor and heartfelt moments, and whatever else comes across your mind. You cut what's not working, add more of what is, and keep on going until you reach the end.
As far as a summary of my career: I was a church secretary who had a pastor who suggested I write a play. One sentence and I thought, "Yeah, why not? I'll give it a try." I also grew up absolutely loving humor and playing around with words. I studied comedians and got the opportunity to write for Phyllis Diller and other comedians. Ultimately, I went on staff with Bob Hope, becoming his first woman staff writer, and wrote his television specials, military shows, and personal appearances. I was with him for fifteen years, cowriting the book, Dear Bob... Bob Hope's Wartime Correspondence with the GIs of WW2, with his daughter and producer, Linda Hope.
You mentioned working with Bob Hope but also said meeting Ronald Reagan was a memorable experience for you. Can you describe that event?
My husband and I attended Bob Hope's 90th birthday party, and he (Ronald Reagan) was also invited. When I saw that Ronald Reagan was walking just a bit ahead of us, I got the courage to ask if he'd take a photo with me. We posed for the photo, my husband snapped the photo, but the flash didn't go off. Disappointed, I thanked him and was ready to move along. But he said, "Would you like to try it again?" Well, of course I did. So, we posed again, my husband snapped the photo again, but the flash didn't go off again. The following day, I took the film in to be developed, hoping and praying that something came out. But it was just a black negative. But, I went ahead and got it developed and enlarged, and I framed it and hung it on my wall because I KNOW it's me and Ronald Reagan! I was telling that story in a speech, and afterwards a man came up to me and asked, "So did you ever get that picture?" I said, "No, I had my two chances and I blew it." Then, he handed me his card. It was Michael Reagan, the president's son. The following week, I got a call from the president's office inviting me and my entire family to his office to have our photos taken with him. He was such a gracious man! I cherish that fun memory!
How did you end up working on scripts for plays?
I
actually wrote my first play adaptation in elementary school as an
assignment and loved the process. Then, I wrote church plays which we
produced every Christmas and Easter, large pageants, as well as dramatic
plays centered around various themes. Humor was always a major part of
the presentations. I continued playwriting even while working on staff
as Bob Hope's first woman staff writer. So, the stage has always been
part of my life. I love seeing stories come to life through the talents
of the actors, directors, set designers, sound directors, and everyone
else involved in the process!
What led you to working with Wanda Brunstetter?
I had worked with Wanda before with the adaptation of her Daughters of Lancaster County
series. This became the musical, Stolen, where I first introduced
detective Foster Bates. Fannie, who had the added element of being avid
Amish mystery reader and perceived herself as an amateur sleuth played
beautifully with Foster's reluctancy to get involved in much of anything
since retiring from the Chicago Police Department. Bringing these two
back for another mystery seemed like a fun thing for us to do!
Can
you describe the process of working with Wanda on The Rise and Fall of
Miss Fannie's Biscuits, and how that ended up becoming a musical?
Because Fannie (Wanda's creation) and Foster (a character I created) were such fun to work with in the musical Stolen,
I wanted to write another mystery involving these two offbeat mystery
sleuths. I approached Wanda and asked if she would be interested in
writing a novel together that would accompany the musical. She was on
deadline for another book (I believe more than one), but she said it
sounded like fun, and she would make room. She obtained permission from
her publisher, and we started writing. And Wanda's instincts were right,
it was a lot of fun! We so appreciate all the kind comments from
readers and are happy that they are enjoying these two quirky characters
(and the rest of the contestants and supporting characters as much as
we did!) The musical will be opening in both Indiana and Pennsylvania.
If you plan on being in the area, I highly recommend seeing it. It's
going to be a lot of fun, with fantastic actors, original songs, and
plenty of twists and turns! Another element that I should throw in is
that during our writing process, Wanda broke her humerus bone and
shoulder. So she indeed suffered for her art. One interesting thing
about that is that I had broken my humerus bone several years ago, and
our editor had also broken hers! So, here we were three people writing
humor, and we all had broken humerus bones!
Did
you adapt the Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits novel into the
script for the musical? How were the musical elements added to the
script?
Yes.
It's always a challenge working the story elements into a stage
production because you only have so much time and less players to work
with. Also, their entrances and exits have to support their stage time
availability, keep the story and pacing flowing, and everything needs to
build to a good climax and satisfying ending. That's a challenge with
any production. I also wrote many of the song lyrics that you will hear
in the musical and enjoyed that aspect of the writing process. One the
musical was written, then I worked closely with director Monica DePaul
and Dramaturg Bobby Hall. for fine-tuning the above elements. A few
things will be different than what is in the book, for staging purposes,
but I'm very excited to see the finished production.
Will you be at any of the premier showings of The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits musical?
The
play runs at the Bird in Hand Theater (Lancaster, PA) from April
3-August 2, 2025, and at The Blue Gate Theater (Shipshewana, IN) from
July 1 - October 25, 2025. Wanda and I both will be autographing April 3
(7pm) and April 4 (1pm) at the musical opening, and at the Shady Maple
in East Earl, PA on April 5th from 12-2pm. We will also be at the
opening of the play in Shipshewana, IN on July 1, 2025 autographing
books.
What do you hope readers gain from The Rise and Fall of Miss Fannie's Biscuits?
First
and foremost, I hope they enjoy reading the book. Sometimes in life we
all just need to sit down and enjoy some laughter and a good escape. We
hope this book does that for people. But there are also lessons to by
learned by the characters, and we hope that, along with the scriptures
they represent, will be a help and comfort to people too. And I
certainly hope there are more Fannie and Foster mysteries to come. I'm
game if Wanda is! We'll all try not to break any bones next time,
though.
What is your favorite Bible verse and why?
It's
hard to narrow them down to one, so if you'll forgive me, I will
mention two of my favorites. Proverbs 15:15b KJV which says, "...he that
is of a merry heart hath a continual feast." And Jeremiah 29:11 KJV:
"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord,
thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end."
Where can readers find you online?
Thank
you for Author Spotlight Martha. I hope to see you around here. I hope you stop
by once in awhile.Thank to the Admin and though Questions for us Members of
Wanda Cippity Clap Club for these and allowing us to use the Questions into a blog post (Author Spotlight Post).
