Hmmm… What do all of the Cozy Mystery authors in the title of this entry have in common?
In today’s world of Cozy Mysteries, it is becoming more and more common to have one author with two, three, or even four personas. Sometimes it takes a reader having his/her favorite sleuth’s detecting skills to find all of their favorite author’s aliases!
Just this week I found out that one of my very favorite authors is adopting a new pseudonym. Yikes! One more Cozy Mystery author for me to keep track of on my Favorite Authors list.
I discovered physicist Camille Minichino’s Periodic Table Mystery Series years ago, when my daughter lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (As an aside, I started reading – and enjoying – Laura Childs’ Scrapbooking series when my daughter moved to New Orleans.) I remember visiting my daughter in Cambridge when we took a bus tour of the Boston area, and I actually recognized some of the places Camille Minichino referred to in her Periodic Table Cozies. I felt like I (almost) knew the area!
Getting back to the reason for this entry…
Camille Minichino (a miniaturist) adopted the Margaret Grace pseudonym for her Miniature Mystery Series. This is yet another of my favorite Cozy Mystery series. (No, my daughter did not move to California!) This meant that I had another favorite Cozy Mystery author >>> sort of like the “two, two, two mints in one.” ad!
Yow-zee! In 2011, who should appear on the Cozy Mystery horizon but Ada Madison! Ada Madison started writing the Sophie Knowles Mystery Series. Out came my computer desktop’s Favorite Authors list, and I added “Ada Madison (aka Camille Minichino & Margaret Grace” to the list. I finally felt like this was it. I had the list pretty much the way it would remain.
Until… last week! This is when I found out that Camille Minichino, also known as Margaret Grace, who is also known as Ada Madison, will soon be known as Jean Flowers. Jean Flowers will be writing the Post Office Mystery Series, which will begin with Death Takes Priority.
Now, don’t get me wrong! I’m excited to see that Camille Minichino/Margaret Grace/Ada Madison will be writing another Cozy Mystery Series. However, I sometimes wonder why the Cozy Mystery world has so many multiple personalities!
Susan* says
It’s usually the publisher’s decision, I think you’ll find, and there can be various reasons.
One is a form of what the acting world calls ‘typecasting’: “Oh, the public knows Camille M. as the author of Series X – they won’t accept something different from her…” So a ‘new’ author is born. (Publishers think readers are stupid.)
Another reason is that they simply don’t want to flood the market if an author is too prolific. That ‘can’ damage sales – just too much at once. I’ve seen it happen with authors in other genres.
Also a ‘new’ author creates new interest, and later, can be re-released under the original name, thus creating extra sales from the few who hadn’t found out, yet. (The very few. Readers are ‘not’ as stupid as publishers think!)
Plus, sometimes if an author changes publisher, the original name / series can still be contracted to the original publisher, hence a new pseudonym is needed.
The first three have all applied to several well-known authors in the past, including the horrendously prolific British mystery writer John Creasey who published under 28 different names, some of them female, and who, it’s said, wrote so many books, even he couldn’t remember how many! (Somewhere between 700 – 800, I believe!)
And, one final piece of trivia – Erle Stanley Gardner, of Perry Mason fame wrote a series as A.A. Fair. This was started for a bet with a friend! (“You’re an established author, it’s easy for you to get published! I bet you couldn’t do it if nobody knew who you were…”)
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Susan*, I doubt an author being too prolific would make publishers want pseudonyms. If that is the reason, they must really think the readers are stupid, since most of them have access to finding out all of the pseudonyms.
I know there are authors who are now releasing their initial books under the names that have caught on. Marion Chesney’s books are now being re-released under M.C. Beaton.
I remember you telling us about John Creasy. Now he was prolific!
Margaret M. says
I always wondered about pseydonyms, do the authors choose to use multiple names or do the agents, editors, publishers choose? Two of my favorite authors use the same name (their legal or real name) for both of their series. So, it really does make me curious. I guess that would have been a good question to ask at Bouchercon last year, when it was in Albany. But at the time, the authors I spoke with only had one series published. Of course, I understand when authors use different names when they write (say) romance novels and then cross over to mysteries. But, I can’t figure out why they use different names when they just write different mystery series.
But, I guess as long as the stories are good, who cares what the authors call them selves.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Margaret M, I agree with you about an author using two names if they write two different genres.
Margaret Anne says
I read the first two Periodic Table mysteries and really liked them. Camille Minichino wrote very engaging mysteries. I may be biased since I live in Boston and enjoy reading mysteries that use Boston as their main setting. I haven’t read her Miniatures series or Sophie Knowles series, but I think I will definitely add them to my TBR pile.
Thank you, Danna, for assembling so many helpful lists so we can find our favorite authors regardless of the pseudonyms they may be using.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Margaret Anne, thank you! I try to find all of the pseudonyms, but sometimes the author and his/her publisher make it difficult to do!
Lexie says
As an avid mystery reader I have pondered this myself. Is it because they are mass producing multiple series hence the subterfuge? Or is it the authors choice? I have to admit that I am set in my ways and I like one name only. It has become very annoying. Multiple name use authors get passed up by me and therefor not purchased. I will not put the effort into a darn spread sheet to track names.
Life is to short to chase multiple names. This is why I love Sheila Connolly. She has 4 series and one name, her own.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Lexie, while I would prefer one name, the fact is that many of my favorite authors have more than one moniker. I don’t have a spread sheet, but I do have a long list on my desktop where I mark the books off as I read them. I would be re-reading lots of Cozies with a déjà vu sort of feeling all the way through.
MJ says
Lexie,
FYI: Sheila Connolly has also written the Glassblowing Mystery under the name of Sarah Atwell. It’s pretty good, but only has three books.
I hope you’re still reading this blog, although it is days later. If you enjoy Sheila Connolly, you may like this series.
Denise says
I do wish they would stick w/ one name but Susan* offered some great insight into the madness(LOL0) .I did get curious about why this author had so many series under so many different names so I checked to see who the publishers were. Each of these series has a different publishing house. Her new series under Jean Flowers is being published by Kensington Publishing Co. BTW I have put this one in my wish list after reading a blurb on Amazon. I love this website.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Denise, your sleuthing abilities have come through! This explains a whole lot!
MJ says
I always like to know something about the author when I read a book. Just like I’m interested in the background of an actor when I go to a play. What REALLY IRKS me is when there is NO information about the author on the back page of a book. Oftentimes there is no copyright to the author on the title page, probably because the author doesn’t want anyone to know who wrote the book.
Many of these ‘anonymous’ authors don’t write acknowledgements, either. I get very frustrated with the many who want to remain under a veil of secrecy. How sad it is when an author spends numerous hours writing a book and has no pride in it, perhaps not wanting neighbors, friends, or relatives to know about it. Are they ashamed of their work?
MANY, many kudos to Minichino who always has an author’s page so we know something about her and always has her name on the title page w/copyright attribution. The same is true of R. Isleib and her pseudonym, Lucy Burdette. There are many other authors who use pseudonyms (perhaps at the publisher’s request), BUT still give the reader their background info on the author’s page. They write exciting stories and are proud of it.
C. Minichino can write under the names of Madison, Grace, and even Flowers, I’ll read them. She lets the reader know who she is. On her web page she clearly identifies ALL these names. She’s proud of her work and is an excellent author.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
MJ, I like to know a little something-something about the authors I read, also. I totally agree with you about Camille Minichino. I prefer her first two series over her third, but when I say “prefer” I really mean I hold those two as some of my very favorite series.
Stash Empress says
I’ve always hated that — because if I know I like a certain author, I’d be thrilled to find more series by the same person. Now, with the internet, and this site (and others) its easy to know when your favorite writer is coming out with a new series under a new pseudonym — but years ago there was no internet & I had no idea who was who — which resulted in missing out on some series I would have LOVED to read (and which are now out of print & nearly impossible to find).
I can see the logic though if they’re totally different genres — like MC Beaton’s mysteries (Hamish & Agatha) vs. Marion Chesney’s lovely older regencies (which are now coming back under the MC Beaton name) – but the funny thing is — that I *LOVED* the Marion Chesneys — even though I wasn’t really a regency fan — and even though at that time I didn’t know she was MC Beaton!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Stash, I’m, guessing that Marion Chesney’s books are selling a whole lot more now that she has re-released them as M.C. Beaton…