 Meet
Fran Stewart
At the Osterneck Auditorium
Thursday,
May 15, 2008 at 7:00 PM
Author
of the Biscuit McKee Mystery
Series
Like many people who experience a health challenge, Fran Stewart now
claims that what she went through six years ago turned out to be one
of the best things that ever happened to her. “I must be a slow
learner,” Ms. Stewart says with a laugh. “Here I’d had a dream
of writing murder mysteries for years, and I’d ignored it.” She
knows now that ignoring your dream not only gets you nowhere, it can
get you into trouble with your body and with your entire being.
The three and a half months she spent recovering
was the time she finally sat down and let the story of Biscuit McKee,
a small-town librarian, and Marmalade, the orange and white library
cat, pour out of her into what eventually became her first novel Orange
as Marmalade. Her characters wanted to tell more about themselves,
though. “I had to find out what all their stories were,” Stewart
chuckles. “In fact, I’m still finding out.” With at least six
more books planned for the series, she’ll have time for the whole
town history.
Fran Stewart grew up in an Air Force family, and
Martinsville, the town she created for her mystery series, is the home
town she never had but always wanted. Except for the murders. Her
books are what the industry terms “cozies,” which means there is
no gratuitous sex, violence, or offensive language. But there is
plenty of humor, always a good puzzle, intriguing characters, and some
surprising plot twists along the way.
 Her
published books are:
- The
Biscuit McKee Mystery Series
- Orange
as Marmalade
- Yellow
as Legal Pads
- Green
as a Garden Hose
- Blue
as Blue Jeans
- Resolution,
a book of poems, and
- From
the Tip of My Pen: a manual for writers
Her upcoming books are:
- As
Orange as Marmalade / Tan naranja como mermelada, a
bilingual book for children, based on the main characters in
her mystery series. Sales of this book will benefit The Hope
Clinic, a non-profit family medical facility in Lawrenceville
GA,
- The
Mystery of Soup, a cookbook featuring soup recipes from
mystery writers and their favorite independent bookstores, and
- Indigo
as an Iris, the 5th Biscuit McKee Mystery.
Ms. Stewart is a firm advocate for the
understanding and gentle treatment of animals, and she donates a
portion of all proceeds from her book sales to the Humane Society and
the Gorilla Foundation. She
is a frequent speaker at women’s organizations and book clubs.
To learn more about Ms. Stewart, visit her online at www.franstewart.com.
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