Clicking Our Heels: What We Read

Clicking Our Heels: Writers
are often asked if they write in a particular genre, if that is the one they
read. Here are some of what the Stiletto Gang members read and some of their
favorite authors.

Robin Hillyer-Miles – I read many different genres.
My favorite authors currently are Jess Loury, Susan Addison Allen, Susan Boyer,
and Karen White.

Saralyn Richard – I read everything – mysteries,
historical fiction, women’s fiction, biography, blended genres, literary fiction.

Kathleen Kaska – I read mysteries, but I also read
anything that catches my eye, especially inspirational nonfiction. When I find
an author I really like, I read every book they’ve written.

Dru Ann Love – I prefer reading cozy mysteries. I
will read other genres, but cozies are my go-to-read.

Kathryn Lane
– I write mystery thrillers, so I tend to read quite a few
throughout the year from a whole variety of novelists, such as Harlan Coben,
Alice Feeney, Jeffery Deaver, but I also like the books of Donna Tartt,
Frederick Forsyth, and Megan Abbott. I read books written by fellow writers
who, like me, are not New York Times bestsellers (yet!), whose novels are often
as good as or even better than anything else on the market. And Sofía Segovia’s
The Murmur of Bees in Magical Realism is a book I love.

Debra Sennefelder – I have a long list of favorite authors that I read in my
genre of cozy mysteries. Some of them are a part of The Stiletto Gang. Others
include Jenny Kales, VM Burns, Jenn McKinlay, Katherine Hall Page.

T.K.
Thorne – I read
anything that is well written. Crime fiction is new for me because as a former
police officer, it feels more like work than escape.  My favorite author is Sue Monk Kidd. Her
writing is beautiful and so powerful. 
But I don’t consciously try to mimic it. 
It’s important to find your own voice.

Anita Carter – I read mostly mysteries, suspense, and some women’s
fiction. I enjoy Lisa Gardner (just bought her latest release!), Laura Levine,
Karen White, and Susan Boyer, to name a few.

Barbara Kyle – I write fiction but many of my favorite
reads are narrative non-fiction. Anything by Simon Winchester or Erik Larson.
Both are incapable of writing a dull book.

Linda Rodriguez – I read everything. I have
long lists of authors I recommend on my website. https://lindarodriguezwrites.blogspot.com

Meri Allen/Shari Randall – I write and read mysteries,
and I love to go back to the Golden Age authors like Agatha Christie and Ngaio
Marsh when I have some reading time.

Mary Lee Ashford – I write cozy mysteries and also read cozy mysteries but I’m
not sure we have space here for all of the favorites. There are currently so
many wonderful cozy authors! Instead, I’ll share a few of the ones I started
reading and that got me interested in the sub-genre of cozies. I avidly read –
M.C Beaton, Jill Churchill, Sharon Kahn, and Anne George and once I’d
started down that cozy path, thanks to them I was hooked. 

Bethany Maines – I have been reading a fair
bit of romance lately, but I’ve read across several genres.  My favorite
recent author is Bethany Bennett (because Bethany’s are awesome) who is
working on a fun romp of Regency Romance trilogy.

Gay Yellen – I’m omnivorous when it comes
to reading. If I weren’t writing mysteries, I’d probably tend toward literary
fiction. But I love good writing in any genre, including non-fiction.

Lynn McPherson – I read and write cozy
mysteries. They are still my favorite. A few of my favorite authors are Vicki
Delany and Jenn McKinlay. I’ve also read some delicious domestic suspense
novels lately by Hannah Mary McKinnon and J.T. Ellison.

Donnell Bell – In the fiction realm, I read across the board. From Sci-fi
to historical fiction. Right now, I’m reading a western by D.V. Berkom.  I enjoy cozies, but prefer a substantive
plot, such as Cathy Perkins’s Body in the Beaver Pond and Lois Winston’s
Anastasia Pollack series. For romantic suspense, there are too many authors to
count. My favorite thriller writer is Tess Gerritsen—she’s an autobuy for
me.  Mystery writers, again, too many to
count. If I want to read mystery and learn something about art forgery, I read
Donald Beckwith. I ADORE discovering new authors.

Lois Winston – I write humorous mysteries,
but I’m an extremely eclectic reader. Lately I’ve been reading a lot of
historical mysteries and women’s fiction.

Debra H. Goldstein – Although I most enjoy cozy mysteries
and biographies, I read everything in the crime genre as well as literary
fiction.

Cathy Perkins: I read a lot of mysteries, from thriller to cozy, but I
also read extensively outside my writing genre. 
From a craft perspective, it helps to see, for example, the creative
world building of fantasy or the deep character focus of women’s fiction. I
also think reading books other than mysteries gives me a much needed break,
reminding me readers read for story, for escape, for enjoyment – elements
authors always keep in the back of their minds as they write.

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