I suppose this is what is meant by the term "end of an era."
A lot of the time, a person doesn't even realise they've entered an "era" until they're nearing the end of it. I sure didn't.
It was 2016 and I was busy trying to build a writing business. The uproar around self-publishing and Amazon's relatively new Kindle Direct Publishing platform, (if you don't know about the uproar, don't worry) had subsided, and writers taking control of their own careers (much like indie musicians and indie filmmakers had before them) was becoming more socially acceptable in the industry. Like all indie-endeavors, there are those who try and give up, and those who try and don't give up.
I was the latter.
Don't get me wrong. There were many days where I wanted to give up! Entrepreneurial efforts are hard, and even more so when you're trying to monetize art.
Back to the fall of 2016. I was working on the fourth book of a mixed genre series which just wasn't selling well. We were living in Germany at the time, and with my husband on the road a lot (let's just say I know about indie musicians), and all I had to to do with my time was write.
Every writer's dream, right? Except that I was really depressed about it. And alone a lot of the time. In a foreign country.
Nothing pulls a depressed writer out of a slump like a shiny new idea, and I had a shiny new idea. I just had to finish the book that I knew wasn't going to sell.
When we got back to Canada, sometime in November, I rolled up my sleeves and got to work. I'd been inspired by the TV show, Miss Fisher Mysteries. When I watched the last episode, I thought to myself, I'd like to read books like this series. (And yes, I'd read Kerry Greenwood's books too, but there were only so many of those.) I found Rhys Bowen's Royal Spy series, and Maisie Dobbs, and a couple of indie-authors with short series.
Certainly room for another 1920s cozy mystery there.
So I switched gears from YA dystopian to the cozy mystery genre.
To explain, mysteries were my go-to reading genre. I loved Sue Grafton and Rex Stout and Agatha Christie. But, as a writer, I didn't have confidence that I could write a mystery. A mystery was not only a well-crafted plot with well-rounded characters, but you also had to out-wit the reader.
Before then, I didn't think I had the skills to do that, but at that point, I had many books under my belt, and weren't all books a mystery at their core? The reader turning the page because they want to know what happens next?
I felt like I was ready to try.
And Ginger Gold was born.
I spent several weeks researching the era and working on character sketches and brainstorming backstory for my cast. I decided on the mystery plot and the situation: Ginger and a friend would travel from Boston (where I onced lived) to London, England (where I had visited a few times) and a death would happen on a steamship. Also there would be a cute-meet with her love interest who would also be a detective of some sort.
I went to Mexico with my husband and daughter for three weeks in January of 2017, a working holiday, and spent a couple of hours each day working on this new story idea. Honestly, my expectations of success were so low, I kept the story short and later called it an introductory book to the series.
Ten years and 32 books (and three spin-offs totalling 18 books and 14 short stories) later, I'm preparing to say goodbye.
How do I feel about that?
I'll admit, my feelings are mixed. Ginger and gang have been a part of my psyche for so long, I don't think I can ever separate myself from her and her world. If my readers have character attachment--feeling that these fictional characters are their friends--then I have it more so.
But two things happened simultaneously: The story naturally worked itself to the end of the 1920s (another era ending), and I got tired. Who wouldn't after so much expenditure of energy, especially the brain power kind?
I'm ready for a sabbatical starting January 2027, and I can't really say right now how long that needs to be. A while.
I finished the last book. It's been through my editor and my proofreaders. I like it. I'm happy with Ginger's happy ending. I think you'll like it too.
What am I working on now?
I'm working on the companion book for the series. I've started reading from the beginning, reliving Ginger's journey along with my own. For each book I discuss the historical backdrop, but also what points of interest inspired the story, and where my own life was at during the writing and publishing of each book. Believe me, a lot has happened, both to Ginger and myself!
The companion book is on offer through my kickstarter campaign, running now.
The burning question, will there be more Ginger Gold in the 1930s or beyond?
I'm getting this question a lot. I love that readers want more of Ginger and her world, but that world would have to change.
1. The biggest change would be the loss of a few beloved characters. Ambrosia, Pippins... Boss, they would have to pass on quietly off page.
2. The tone would be a little darker, more like what we see in Higgins & Hawke set in the early 1930s, or Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs.
3. The historical backdrop would be the lead up to world war two and into the war years, however the books would continue to be murder mysteries.
I'm still undecided. Maybe I'll create a poll and see how YOU feel about a new Ginger Gold series set in a new era.