I’d like to welcome the fabulous Mary Keliikoa to the blog for #WriterWednesday!

Things you never want to run out of: Coffee. I’m not sure how I’d function!

Things you wish you’d never bought: Most of my exercise equipment—except for my treadmill. I always have grand plans of lifting weights, and working on my core with those exercise balls, and now they sit there and taunt me.

A few of your favorite things: Golden retrievers, traveling to warm places, and British mysteries.

Things you need to throw out: Half my wardrobe. I swear I still have clothes from twenty years ago—they’ll eventually come back into fashion…right?

Things you need for your writing sessions: Did I mention I love coffee? It fuels my writing time, so an absolute must have, along with my computer!

Things that hamper your writing: social media. If I could have it unavailable to me from 7am to noon, I’d get more done!

Hardest thing about being a writer: Wondering if the book will come together early on. Even with a good idea, I’m never quite sure until I’ve passed a certain point.

Easiest thing about being a writer: showing up at the keyboard. I look forward to it every day. I may not always get much done, but even if I spend an hour editing, I feel like I’ve accomplished something that day.

Words that describe you: tenacious, loyal, kind

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: impatient and easily distracted

Favorite music or song: I’m a country girl all the way.

Music that drives you crazy: Rap – I’ve never understood the appeal.

Favorite beverage: Besides coffee…. I love Ginger Beer.

Something that gives you a sour face: Anything green that identifies itself as a healthy smoothy.

Favorite smell: Cinnamon. I really love walking into my house in the autumn because I have all the spicy scents going!

Something that makes you hold your nose: Hominy. My grandmother used to cook it and I remember just hating that smell.

Things you always put in your books: The beginnings or hint of some kind of romantic relationship. I just feel like it adds a layer of real life.

Things you never put in your books: Graphic violence.

Favorite places you’ve been: Hawaii, New Zealand, Great Barrier Reef

Places you never want to go to again: Does the emergency room of the hospital count? Because I could live my whole life and not go there again!

Most daring thing you’ve ever done: Zip Lining

Something you chickened out from doing: Bungee jumping – I just couldn’t see myself free falling…rope attached or not!

Some real-life story that made it to one of your books: In Hidden Pieces, the cold case in that book was based on the event that happened in my small town when I was 14. Two girls went out walking and one of the girls was abducted, never making it home.

Something in your story that readers think is about you, but it’s not: In my PI Kelly Pruett series, Kelly has an obsession with peanut butter and most think that’s from something I enjoy. Truth is, I liked it okay as a kid, but not so much as an adult.

About Mary:

Eighteen years in the legal field, and an over-active imagination, led Pacific NW native Mary Keliikoa to start writing mystery and suspense. She is the author of the award-winning HIDDEN PIECES and DEADLY TIDES in the Misty Pines mystery series, the PI Kelly Pruett mystery series including the multi-award nominated DERAILED for Best Debut, and the upcoming stand-alone DON’T ASK, DON’T FOLLOW out June of 2024. Her short stories have been included in Woman’s World and the anthology, Peace, Love, and Crime.

When not in Washington, you can find Mary with toes in the sand on a Hawaiian beach. But even under the palm trees and blazing sun, she’s plotting her next murder—novel that is.

Let’s Be Social:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mary.Keliikoa.Author

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/mary_keliikoa

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mary.keliikoa.author/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/mary-keliikoa

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20038534.Mary_Keliikoa

Website: www.marykeliikoa.com